The Impossible
by nikkiclyneZX15
Summary: She has been alone her entire life, having been abandoned as a small child. But when she moves to a new city, she may just have found the friendship and love she has always wanted.
1. Good and Bad First Impressions

Chapter One – Good And Bad Impressions

It was dark. Lightning flashed brightly, providing momentary light in a small remote town. Rain showered onto the buildings, being the only sound heard for miles. The cold wet drops fell heavily onto the rooftops and floor. But there were some that never made it to the ground, for they splashed on the head of a lonely figure, sitting on the stairs of her home. A small, frail little girl sat alone, tears pouring down her face, as the world seemed to have long forgotten her. Her normally bright brown eyes were dull with sadness and fear as she hugged her knees to her chest tightly in a desperate attempt to comfort herself.

_Her young mind replayed over again the events that happened only minutes earlier. Her daddy, the only family she had left in the world, had left her. And now she sat outside the once occupied house of their family, having now been completely abandoned. This thought only brought forth more tears as they cascaded down her rosy cheeks. She shivered and hugged herself, the coldness of the dreary weather finally getting to her. But this didn't last long when suddenly a pair of bright headlights shone on her, startling the toddler. The vehicle stopped and a tall man stepped out. The girl wasn't sure whether to feel relieved or scared to see a grown adult, but her desperation for love and attention clouded her judgement and she forced herself to stay still as the stranger approached her._

_When he was no more than a meter away, he knelt down to her level, holding an umbrella over both of their heads. She wasn't able to see his face very well in the darkness but was barely able to make out a small smile on the man's face. _

_He spoke kindly. "Hello there little one, are you lost?"_

_She lifted her sparkling eyes to him and shook her head. "No…I'm all alone. Nobody wants me."_

_Her gaze darted down when he reached forward and offered his hand. "Well why don't you come with me then? I'll take good care of you."_

_Her need for food and shelter took over and she placed her much smaller hand in his rather large one. Giving her one more smile, he stood up and led her to his car. She stared curiously up at him as they walked, wondering why he was willingly to help her and why he wouldn't reveal his face. Just as that thought crossed her mind, another bolt of lightning lit up the sky and she briefly caught a shaggy mane of grey hair, and two stern grey eyes staring straight into her own._

Kazume bolted upright in her bed with a gasp, haunted by the memory she had just experienced. After realizing where she was, her shoulders slumped as she let out a frustrated groan. These nightly visits to her scarring past weren't doing much good to her health. And it didn't help that all she ever mainly saw were the eyes of the man that raised her…well at least he tried to. Shaking her head she pulled the covers off her and raised herself off her bed. 'May as well get up, not like I'll be able to fall back to sleep anyway.' So grabbing some spare clothes, she walked into the bathroom to shower and freshen up. She had a big day today.

Kazume Miyazaki, your basic every day twenty two year old girl that everyone could freely be friends with. But despite her fun, loving demeanour, nobody really knew how much she had suffered. Her mother had died giving birth to her, and her father had practically left her for dead at a very young age. Since then she was forced to grow up in a stupid orphanage until she turned of age. The minute she turned eighteen, she didn't waste any time packing her things and leaving that forsaken place forever. And now she had been living by herself for the past four years, focusing her general interest on automobiles and vehicles. She was only average at fixing them, but she was one hell of a racer. This was really the only reason she had friends in this place.

Grabbing a towel she stepped out of the steaming shower and stood in front of the mirror. For a few minutes she stared blankly at her reflection, pondering over her present situation.

'I know I'm making the right decision. There's nothing left for me here except for racing and screaming fans. I need to find somewhere I can make proper friends.'

Nodding at her conclusion, she walked out of the bathroom to get changed and finish the last of her packing. Ten minutes later she was ready, she didn't really own very much which made it easier to travel. Carrying her two only bags, she made her way outside and towards her motorcycle. She strapped her luggage on the back before mounting. Pulling on her helmet, she revved the vehicle to life and took off down the road, not once looking back.

Unbeknownst to the young traveller, there was another conflicted being in a far away place. Hard amethyst eyes roamed over the planet, glaring at what he thought were pathetic, good for nothing mortals. He was in fact staring at one mortal in particular. A young man who looked to be in his early twenties, walking around the spacious temple he was luckily enough to accommodate. His icy stare hardened as he approached a young woman brushing away fallen leaves. His mouth twisted into a growl as the two shared a loving embrace. He turned away unsure as to why that bothered him so much.

"Ah…spying on your dear cousin again are we Arimon?"

The addressed figure turned his head slightly to look at his visitor, but only scowled when the owner of the voice only turned out to be his Aunt…or, as other people would know her as, the Ruler of Demon Kind. But that fancy title of hers didn't intimidate him in the slightest.

He sneered and turned away. "It's none of your damn business."

She laughed. "On the contrary, it most certainly is my business. My only daughter is living amongst those wretched humans so naturally I have a right to spy just as much as you do."

Arimon scoffed, running his hand through his deep red spiky hair. "I don't understand her Hild. What was Belldandy thinking? Living with such useless creatures."

Hild patted his shoulder. "That's goddess related, you don't need to know."

He whipped around to snarl at her. "Have you forgotten that I'm half god myself? Of course I need to know!"

She raised an eyebrow at him. "So then why don't you go down and see for yourself? Discover why Belldandy has this affectionate attachment to these 'humans'. Especially to that man down there."

They both turn back in time to see Belldandy place a soft kiss on said man's cheek. Arimon's scowl deepened. "What was his name again?"

Hild grinned. "Keiichi Morisato."

Just hearing his name set his blood boiling. "Fine, I'll go down, but only because I'm curious. It's not like I care."

Her devilish smile grew wider. "Well then that's settled, but there is one condition before you go."

He rolled his eyes. "What is it now _'Aunty'_? He spat out the emphasized word.

Her smile disappeared, replaced with a hard leer. "Heed this warning. If you dare to fall in love with a human girl, then I will show no mercy towards you."

He raised an uncaring eyebrow. "Oh really? And what do you plan on doing?"

Her purple eyes glowed harshly. "I will take away the one thing you hold most dear…your immortality, and all your powers that come with it. And you will be forced to live the remainder of your days as a mortal man."

He chuckled and shrugged. "I assure you, I have no intention on getting attached to one of those…'creatures.' So you can relax that dark, evil heart of yours."

Hild laughed loudly. "Now that's what I like to hear from my favourite nephew! Now off with you, I expect great results from you."

Without a response, Arimon disappeared from view, his Aunt watching with a satisfied smirk on her face.

Kazume had been travelling for several days now and was starting to feel weary. She had finally arrived at the next major city but had yet to find a decent place to live. 'Man people here are strict, they don't hand out accommodations to just anyone do they? Well I should find some food first, and then I'll keep searching.'

She found a decent joint and ordered a burger and a drink. Just as she was sitting down to enjoy her meal, voices from her right caught her attention. She opened her burger and took a bite first, before turning her head to look at the newcomers. An average height guy with dark hair, stood in the middle of two girls. One was a little shorter then him with neck length brown hair. Her face held a mischievous grin as she openly teased the now blushing man. 'Huh…wonder if they're related.' She shrugged before turning her attention to the final member of their group. This girl was gorgeous. She stood a little taller than her male companion; her long wavy light brown hair was pulled up into a high ponytail. Even from where she was sitting, she could clearly see the bright blue eyes that shone with warmth and kindness. She walked upright and gracefully as she giggled at the amusing antics of her friends. The only strange features on her were the marks on her face, a blue diamond on her forehead and an upside down triangle on each cheek. Kazume couldn't help but stare. 'Are those tattoos? Weird placing for them, wonder if they symbolise something?'

She was ripped out of her thoughts by a horrified yell. She looked over just in time to see a random thug race past the brunette girl on his motorbike and snatch her handbag. A grin appeared across her face. 'Sweet! Time for some fun!' Abandoning her half finished lunch, she grabbed her helmet and ran before jumping onto her bike. She quickly started the engine before skidding off in pursuit of the thief.

Megumi shook her fist at the man on the bike who was now disappearing from view. "Hey! That's my handbag!"

The man named Keiichi turned to his girlfriend. "Belldandy! Can't you do something?"

Before Belldandy could respond, let alone perform magic, a dark blur raced past the three adults. Keiichi gawked as a vague voice could be heard.

"Don't worry! I'll catch him for you!"

Keiichi and the girls could only stare in astonishment. Who was this person?

Kazume raced up a steep grass hill, launched upwards off the edge and landed on solid dirt road. Steering straight she spotted the purse-snatcher a few yards ahead.

She grinned. 'Gotcha.' She turned the handle, increasing the speed on her bike and quickly gaining on him. Up ahead she could see a stunt park and knew exactly what to do. While her target steered around the ramps, she plummeted straight down into them. She revved her bike once more and sped up the ramp on the other side, spinning the bike upside down and over the thief. She landed directly in front of him, startling him and causing his bike to spiral out of control and crash into a nearby tree. She cringed as he went flying over the handles and bashed his head into the thick trunk. "Ouch…that had to have hurt." She dismounted her bike and wandered over to the groaning man on the ground. She bent down and picked up the stolen bag from his limp grip. Sighing, she pulled out her phone and called for an ambulance. 'He'll need to have that head checked out.'

As she hung up, running footsteps were heard behind her. She turned around to come face to face with the owner of the handbag. Smiling, Kazume held it out for the girl to take, which she took gratefully. She was about to turn away before the girl stopped her.

"Wait! How can I repay you? It's rare to come across someone who would go so far for someone they don't know."

Kazume sighed. 'Well I guess I can't be rude.' Reaching up, she removed her helmet to reveal her shoulder length, fire coloured hair. She smiled and held her hand out to the girl. "Hi…Kazume Miyazaki's the name."

The brunette stood stunned for a few seconds before returning her offered handshake. "Megumi Morisato. Wow…you're a girl? Not many women around here can pull off sick stunts like the one you just pulled off."

Kazume laughed and winked. "Well then I guess it's a good thing I'm not from around here isn't it?"

Megumi laughed and turned to the two standing behind her. "By the way, this here is my brother Keiichi, and his girlfriend Belldandy."

She nodded politely to them. "Nice to meet you."

Megumi smiled. "So how long have you been here? Do you have a place to stay?"

Kazume openly deflated. "No, not yet. I've only been here since this morning but it's impossible to find decent apartments in this place."

Megumi smiled wildly. "Well why don't you come live with me then? I live alone in a two bedroom apartment, it'd be nice to have a roommate!"

Kazume couldn't believe her luck. She grinned happily and enthusiastically shook her new friends' hand. "Absolutely! Thank you so much! You are a life saver!"

Everyone laughed, happy for the two girls. After everyone had calmed down, Kazume told Megumi she would give her a ride home in exchange for directions. The girls mounted her bike and rode off, waving goodbye to Keiichi and Belldandy. Kazume gazed back with concern. "Will they be alright? Do they have a ride home?"

Her friend laughed. "They'll be fine! Keiichi has a motorcycle as well!"

She sighed with relief. "Well that's good then! Now some directions would be nice!"

For the next twenty minutes, Megumi guided her through the streets until they pulled in front of a large flat. As her passenger dismounted, Kazume gazed curiously at the building. 'Let's see how long I last at this place." She followed Megumi's lead and hopped off her bike. After chaining it to a nearby railing, she followed her new roommate into their apartment. It wasn't as big as her previous residence, but it seemed comfortable enough for two girls. After an hour-long tour of her new home, she was finally shown to her bedroom. A futon had been laid out already, which Kazume turned and gave a questioning look to Megumi who shrugged.

"I've been meaning to find a roomie for a while, so I set this up for the day I finally found one."

Kazume grinned. "Guess fate must have pulled us together."

Megumi laughed. "I guess that's one way of putting it!" Kazume was startled when she wrapped a sisterly around her shoulders. "I know this might seem a bit forward, but I like you Kazume. Want to be best friends?"

Kazume smiled brightly and returned her one-armed hug. "Absolutely! Best friends rule!" But in reality, Megumi was the first real friend she ever had in her whole life, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to admit that.

The remainder of the day was spent with the girls lounging out in Megumi's bedroom and sharing life stories. Kazume was hesitant about sharing her dark past but eventually reassured herself that Megumi was definitely someone she could trust. So she relayed everything. How she never knew her mother, right up until the day she had left her town and finally came to their city. All her pent up emotions from over the years finally rose to the surface as she sobbed into Megumi's shoulder. The younger girl held her close, stroking her hair comfortingly. Megumi was surprised to hear about Kazume's dreadful life growing up. She was a kind, gentle and fun loving girl, one would think she had a perfect life with how happy she acted. But that was all it was: an act, a steel barrier to shield those from the outside to see the whirlwind of conflicting emotions she kept to herself.

Oh, how lonely it must have been. To grow up with no family or friends, to live in a strict place with constant fear looming with everything that you do. And even after leaving that place, to spend another number of years living alone with no real friends to talk to. Megumi felt a new strong feeling overcome her. This girl needed a friend; well she was going to give her one. She swore she would be the best friend Kazume ever had, and she would guarantee that she would never feel alone ever again.

Megumi continued to hold the tearful girl until finally, she felt her fall asleep on her shoulder. She smiled softly at her, gently pushing her away and lying her down on the futon. She placed the blankets over her before standing up and walking out, sliding the door close behind her. She can sleep in Kazume's room for one night.

Kazume groaned before sleepily forcing her eyes open. She shut them tight again when rays of light shone from the window and right into her eyes. She glared at the rude interruption and groggily sat up. She looked around confusedly at her surrounding, forgetting momentarily where she was. But the next instant, memories of the previous day came flooding back and she remembered she was now in her new roommate and best friends flat. She smiled, realizing Megumi had let her sleep in her room. 'Guess it was the right choice to tell her everything. She's shown me nothing but compassion since I met her yesterday.'

She jumped when the door slid open to reveal Megumi's cheerful face. Kazume grimaced. "How can you be so chipper at this ungrateful hour?"

The brunette rolled her eyes. "Oh please, it's nearly midday. You slept practically all morning."

Kazume's eyes went wide. "Seriously? Wow…so that's what it feels like to sleep in."

Megumi gawked at her. "You've never slept in this late?"

Kazume shrugged. "Well it was a strict orphanage, and after I left there I did a lot of early morning races."

She noticed a glint in her friends' eyes and suddenly felt nervous. Megumi smiled at her. "Did you say you do races?"

Unsure as to where this was going, she nodded. "Yeah, motorbike races mainly…why?"

She leaned backwards in fear when her suddenly hyper roommate jumped up and punched the air. 'What the hell was she so happy about all of a sudden?' She tensed when Megumi grabbed her hands and leaned in so close that Kazume swore she could feel herself starting to sweat.

"Don't suppose you would like to join a club would you?"

Her brain skidded to a halt. 'Wait, what?'

She stared at the brunette in confusion. "Club? What club?"

Megumi grinned. "The Auto Club!"

Kazume's face went blank. "What's the Auto Club?"

Megumi finally let go of her hands and leaned back. "It's a club my brother is a dedicated member of. They're primary focus is to build and fix all vehicles alike to either earn more money or participate in races. Say…are you any good at repairing broken down vehicles?"

Kazume modestly waved her hands in front of her. "Not really…I only do basic maintenance which is what keeps my motorbike running. But other than that I don't have much of a clue. I'm much better at racing."

Megumi's grin grew…if it was possible. "Well whatever, we need to go to my brothers place and tell him of your talents. And no protesting!"

Kazume sheepishly closed her mouth while her friend continued.

"Now we are going to get ready, jump on that fancy ride of yours and visit my brother! Oh and by the way…watch out for Belldandy's relatives."

Kazume tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

Megumi shivered. "Her sisters, Urd and Skuld. It's a chaotic house I'll give ya that much. They're constantly hounding my poor brother. He's just being a good man and a good boyfriend to Belldandy, but those two keep getting in the way! Urd, she's the older one, is using drastic measures to push them together. While Skuld, the younger sister, is doing everything in her power to keep them apart because she's so protective over Belldandy! The whole thing is a living nightmare!"

Kazume giggled at Megumi's rant. By the sounds of things, visiting Keiichi Morisato was going to be a lot of fun. And she couldn't wait.

"KEIICHI! WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO MY PRECIOUS SISTER?"

"Wait Skuld! Calm down it's not what you think!"

"Skuld, why must you always barge in and ruin everything! It was just getting good!"

"No one asked you URD!"

"Skuld, please calm down!"

These were the sounds that greeted Kazume and Megumi as they pulled into the temple grounds. At first sight, Kazume had fallen in love with the serene and peaceful looking building, but that went straight out the window the moment she heard all the yelling. 'I guess Megumi wasn't kidding…it really is chaotic in there.'

She felt Megumi's weight lift of her bike as she hopped off and decided to follow her example. She walked slightly behind her as they approached the front door. Kazume wasn't sure if she was dreading or feeling excited about being here. But it didn't seem like Megumi had any intention of holding back. She lifted her hand and banged loudly on the door.

"HEY KEII! LET US IN!"

Kazume cringed. "Is that really the best way to announce yourself?"

Megumi shrugged. "He's my brother, I couldn't care less."

The two girls heads whipped forwards when the front door slid open. There stood the gentle, welcoming smile of Belldandy. Kazume felt oddly relieved she was the one that opened the door. Her heart warmed when the hostess smiled at them.

"Hello Megumi! And Kazume! How lovely to see you again!"

Kazume stared amazed. "How in the hell did you remember my name?"

A sharp elbow to her rips caused her to turn to Megumi who whispered. "Don't bother, she remembers everyone's names. Must be a natural talent or something."

Belldandy's response was quite different. "It's hard to forget someone who showed such kindness yesterday."

Kazume grinned at her roommate. "I prefer her answer."

She was met with a playful punch to the arm as both girls laughed. Belldandy smiled warmly at the two best friends.

"Oh Megumi, what brings you here?"

The newcomers looked up to see Keiichi walking down the hall to greet them. He smiled when he spotted Kazume. "Hello there, thanks again for your help yesterday."

Kazume blushed modestly. "Aw it's nothing, it was my pleasure! I did what any normal person would've done."

Belldandy gestured down the hall with her hand. "Please come make yourselves at home. Would you like something to eat or drink?"

A growl from Kazume's stomach answered her question. She scratched her head sheepishly while everyone else laughed. While Keiichi led the girls into the tearoom, Belldandy made her way into the kitchen to prepare some lunch for them. As soon as they sat down, the door opened again and Belldandy's sisters walked in. Kazume felt her eyebrows shoot upwards. The taller of the two seemed to be more sophisticated. She was rather tall, a womanly figure with dark skin, silvery white hair and bright purple eyes. She also, Kazume noticed, had the same strange markings on her face as Belldandy. It was the same with the younger sister. Only her physical features couldn't have been anymore different from the others. She had lighter skin like Belldandy, but had long black straight hair that fell down her back and chocolate brown eyes, much like her own. Kazume felt confused, were they even full sisters? They didn't even look related.

Regardless of what she thought, she smiled politely and introduced herself to the two sisters. Megumi then explained how they came to meet and how Kazume chased down the purse-snatcher. Urd grinned impressively while Skuld cheered and gave her a high five causing Kazume to giggle. With that subject at hand, Megumi turned eagerly to her brother.

"That reminds me Kei, Kazume here has a number of skills here that could greatly contribute to the Auto Club!"

Keiichi turned to Kazume with curiosity. "Is this true?"

The redhead smiled. "I guess so. It's like I told Megumi, I can do basic maintenance on a vehicle. But my passion is with motorbike racing."

An excited grin broke out on Keiichi's face. "That's great! We need all the members we can get!"

Kazume smiled. "You know what? Why not? I will join your club. It's the least I can do after the kindness you have all shown me."

Both Morisato's cheered which Kazume laughed at. At that moment the door slid open and Belldandy walked in with a tray full of drinks and lunch. When everyone was full and content, Keiichi, Megumi and Kazume left together to head to the Auto Club and introduce Kazume to all the other members, bidding farewell to the three sisters. They all rode on Keiichi's bike with Kazume in the small sidecar and Megumi sitting behind her brother.

(Several hours later)

Kazume collapsed on her futon, already worn out from the day's events. Once she had arrived at the Auto Club, the first thing she was met with was two very tall and large men stomping up to Keiichi and yelling rather stern orders at him. She wasn't about to stand for this so she tugged Keiichi behind her and yelled right back at them. She couldn't believe the nerve of those guys!

(Flashback)

"KEIICHI MORISATO! WHO IS THIS GIRL? ARE YOU CHEATING ON BELLDANDY YOU LOW LIFE SCUM!"

Kazume felt her jaw drop at the accusation. Well these guys certainly knew how to jump the gun and rush to a ridiculous conclusion. She looked over at Keiichi who was standing there with an aghast expression and waving his hands about in desperate protest. But it obviously wasn't enough to stop the verbal abuse. Clenching her teeth she stomped over placed herself in front of Keiichi and snarled up at the two overgrown brutes.

"BACK OFF YOU BIG LUGS! HOW DARE YOU ACCUSE HIM OF SUCH A THING! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?"

The two much bigger men stumbled backwards several steps and stared with wide eyes at the feisty redhead. They obviously weren't expecting her to suddenly lash out. Kazume's glare hardened, causing them to start sweating bullets.

She leaned in further. "Now…why don't you boys show a little more respect and go about you business. UNDERSTOOD?"

They yelped, saluted her and ran off, leaving large dust clouds in their wake. Kazume smirked and crossed her arms, feeling rather satisfied with herself."

(End of flashback)

Kazume shook her head at the memory. Poor Keiichi, he had to live with those loud mouthed, thickheaded morons every day? That man is a saint for constantly having to put up with that crap. But since she was now an official member, she was going to put a stop to it. She smiled to herself as she remembered the rather astonished expressions on Keiichi and Megumi's faces.

Glancing at the time, she decided she would try and get started on dinner. She gulped. She wasn't too good at cooking, no matter how hard she tried it always ended in disaster for both her and the usually destroyed kitchen. She cracked her knuckles with determination; maybe make something simple like…sushi. She shakily walked towards the fridge…how hard could it be?

Megumi approached her house feeling giddy. Kazume had texted, saying she would have dinner ready for when she arrived home. Her smile widened at the lovely thought but it quickly turned upside when she saw black smoke coming out of the windows, and heard Kazume's panicked shrieking. Megumi burst through the door and ran into the kitchen, to find the horrific sight of a blackened oven, and an equally blackened Kazume, who looked like she was close to tears.

The poor, frightened redhead looked at her best friend with a pout. "Meegguummiii!"

Said best friend stood stunned. "Kazume, what happened in here?"

Kazume's shoulders slumped. "I was trying to make sushi…"

Megumi furrowed her brows. "Sushi? You don't need an oven for that."

Kazume smiled sheepishly. "I thought if I cooked it for a little bit I could make it taste more crispy or something…but next thing I know it exploded in my face."

The brunette sighed. "How's about, in the future, you just leave the cooking to me okay?"

Kazume hung her head in defeat. "Yeah alright."

Megumi walked up and patted her on the shoulder. "I'll clean up here and cook something else, why don't you go and have a shower?"

Kazume nodded. "Alright, I'll be right back."

After Kazume had left to go clean herself, Megumi spent the next thirty minutes to an hour cleaning the oven and preparing a decent meal for both of them. So when Kazume finally emerged from her bedroom, soot-free and freshly dressed. She was met with the pleasant surprise of a sparkling kitchen and two steaming bowls of Ramen. Her mouth watered; she loved Ramen. From where she was sitting at the table, Megumi smiled at her roommate.

"Hey Kazume, come sit down and help yourself."

Kazume didn't need to be told twice. She plonked herself onto the seat and dove straight into the steaming meal. Only a few minutes later, her bowl was empty as she leant back and happily patted her full stomach.

"That was awesome! Thanks Megumi!"

The brunette grinned. "Not a problem. Oh…by the way. Belldandy invited us to go to their house for lunch tomorrow. Apparently she wants to introduce us to some relative of hers."

Kazume attentively sat up straighter. "What kind of relative?"

Megumi shrugged. "I don't know some cousin."

Kazume made a small 'hmm' sound. "Well whatever, why not? Besides I've heard rumours that Belldandy's cooking is legendary." She says this with an excited grin."

Megumi grinned back. "Oh it is, just wait until you try it."

Kazume bounced happily in her seat and cheered, making her friend laugh. After both girls finished their dinner, they spent the remainder of their evening chatting away and giggling. At one point their chatter spiralled into a full out pillow fight. They laughed loudly as cushions collided and feathers flew around like snowflakes in a blizzard. After a draining war and calling it truce, the two friends collapsed on the futon (this time they were in Kazume's room) breathing heavily and laughing uncontrollably. Neither was bothered to move after that, and for the next hour they continued chatting about meaningless things, eventually falling asleep next to each other, their hands clasped together.

**(Several hours earlier)**

Belldandy hummed a happy tune as she swept the front porch of the temple. It was a fine and sunny day, perfect for her to work on the house chores. She looked up and smiled at the bright sun shining in the sky. 'What a beautiful day it's turned out to be.' It was already well into the afternoon and she had most of the temple cleaned. All that was left now was the porch and to bring the laundry inside. She spent another twenty minutes sweeping, and was about to turn around to head inside when a gust of wind blew across the lawn. She whipped around to look behind her. 'That was strange; there isn't a single cloud in the sky, and all the trees are perfectly still. So where did that wind come from?' No sooner had that thought crossed her mind, she felt an overwhelming sensation in her mind. Next moment, the sky darkened and seemed to part ways as a figure descended, causing harsh winds, thunder and lightning that had appeared out of nowhere. Belldandy watched with wide eyes as a tall man levitated himself and landed softly on the ground in front of her, his dark red trench coat flying gently behind him. Belldandy's bright blue eyes lifted to meet the cold stare of two sharp amethyst ones. Her eyes darted from one feature to the other, to his bronze skin, flaming red hair and his clothes. She stopped when she noticed he was wearing a loose black chain around his neck. The instant his feet were fully on the ground, the storm disappeared as quickly as it came. Belldandy stood rooted to the spot as the figure approached her. A knowing smirk appeared on his face.

"Hey there cuz, long time no see."

Her eyes widened as she finally recognised the newcomer. "Arimon?" Her gaze shifted to his forehead to confirm and sure enough she was met with a white diamond shape accompanied by two white triangles on each cheek.

Arimon grinned. "Good to know you still remember me."

After getting over the general shock of her cousins' rather sudden appearance, she smiled politely at him. "It's lovely to see you again, what brings you here?"

His grin vanished into a blank stare. "I heard you were romantically involved with a human named Keiichi Morisato."

Belldandy blushed. "Well…yes I am. He's a very wonderful man."

She was met with a hard glare as he snarled at her. "But he's _human _Belldandy! What's so wonderful about that?"

A rare angry expression appeared on her face. "It doesn't matter if he's human! He's a loving and caring person! I love him!"

Arimon laughed. "Give me a break! Those _creatures _are nothing but our inferiors! There's nothing special about them! Why would you waste your timing _loving _one of them?"

Belldandy sighed sadly. "I'm sorry you feel that way. But the people here are not for us to use for our selfish purposes, I myself have learnt that since living here." She took a step towards him. "Please Arimon, come and meet some of my friends, and you will see there is nothing but kindness and warmth."

Arimon snorted. "Great, there are more of them?" He then sighed loudly. "Fine, but I'm not making any promises."

Belldandy nodded. "Very well, then please come inside and meet Keiichi."

Without a response, Arimon silently followed his cousin into the temple, not really looking forward to meeting everyone. But little did he know, that it was only a matter of hours before he would meet the girl that would change his life forever.

**(The Next Day: 12:30pm)**

Kazume sat on her bike, waiting patiently for Megumi to finish getting ready. The redhead has been up since dawn, her body already being adjusted to a lifetime of early mornings. Her roommate, however, wasn't used to such a routine and had slept until only minutes before they had to leave. And now here she was, waiting outside while her best friend zoomed around the house, trying to get ready in time. Finally she zoomed out the front door, (making sure to close and lock it first) and sprinted over to the motorbike, Kazume grinned when she reached her. "Bout time, girly."

Megumi glared at her. "Shuddup, you know I can never get up as early as you can."

Kazume rolled her eyes. "Whatever, let's get going we don't wanna keep everyone waiting."

The girls fell into a comfortable silence as Kazume revved her bike and took off down the road. The loud engine was too loud for any conversation so while one focused on her driving, the other enjoyed the scenery around her. Eventually, they pulled into the temple ground to see Belldandy talking to a rather tall man with spiky red hair. Kazume raised her eyebrow, as she looked him over. Her immediate thought of him, judging from his long red trench coat, and the long black chain around his neck, was that he seemed to be kind of badass. But hey that could be just her; he could be completely different. She parked her bike, letting Megumi dismount first before jumping off herself. The two girls then walked towards the temple and the smiling face of the awaiting Belldandy.

Arimon glanced to the side when a motorbike rolled into view. He easily noticed that the passenger on the back was a girl, from her neat short brown hair. But the driver was a mystery; they wore a thick black leather jacket and long loose jeans. Their face was hidden from view by a large black helmet. The rider jumped off the bike and joined the brunette. Both were around the same height so he guessed the stranger was a woman. His thoughts were confirmed when they took their helmet off to reveal hair that reached slightly below her shoulders, showing off a blend of bright colours that rivalled fire.

He glared at the two girls, seeing nothing more than worthless human beings. A small growl sounded from his throat as they approached him and Belldandy. The goddess was oblivious to her cousins' aggravation as she smiled brightly at her friends.

"Hello girls! Welcome!"

The redhead grinned. "Afternoon Bell!"

He flinched at her voice. Man she was already getting on his nerves. His scowl never left his face, even when Belldandy turned to introduce him to the girls.

"Please meet my cousin, Arimon. Arimon, these are my two friends. This here is Keiichi's sister Megumi Morisato, and her good friend Kazume Miyazaki."

Both girls bowed politely while Kazume spoke. "It's nice to meet you."

Arimon sneered in response. "Yeah that's right, bow to me inferior bugs."

Belldandy stared at him in horror. "Arimon! What is the matter with you?"

Meanwhile Kazume's jaw was dragging on the floor. What in the hell was his problem? She goes out of her way to come over just to meet him, and he has the nerve to _insult _her? Growling loudly she snarls at him, ignoring Megumi's whispers telling her to calm down

"Just who do you think you are? Coming here and acting like you own the place! You egotistical bastard!"

Arimon stared hard at the redhead, momentarily startled by how ferocious she suddenly was. His leer was met with an equally icy glare from her, as the two shot daggers at each other. With her mood ruined by the newcomer, Kazume walked around him and stormed in the temple, slamming the door shut with a loud bang. Arimon walked to the other end of the house, aiming to be as far away from his new rival as possible.

This left Belldandy standing alone with Megumi, both unsure with what had just transpired. The former let out a sorrowful sigh. "Well that was rather unexpected."

Megumi chuckled. "Aw don't worry too much Bell, it's just a first impression. I'm sure it won't take long before they're good friends."

Belldandy smiled at her optimism. "I guess you're right. Then let's head inside and have lunch."

And they did just that, not realizing just how wrong they were about everything. The bad impression between the girl and boy was only the beginning of a long journey that will leave anger, hurt feelings and confusion in its' wake.

End of Chapter 


	2. How Anger Turns Into Regret

Chapter 2

To say the mood for lunch that day was awkward would have to be the biggest understatement of the century. The tension was thick and uncomfortable, the only sound being the chopsticks connecting with plates as food was quickly eaten. Two residents in the room, however, refused to touch their meals which made the atmosphere all that more unbearable. Everyone watched with concern as a fiery girl and bad tempered boy sent death glares to each other from opposite ends of the room.

The pin dropped when he smirked at her, which raised her temper. Finally fed up, Kazume rose to her feet with her teeth gritted.

"Megumi…feel free to have Keiichi take you home. I can't stand to be in the room any longer with this insensitive and arrogant jerk! I'M LEAVING!"

Before Megumi could object, her friend had stomped out of the room and down the hall until everyone heard the slamming of the front door, and eventually the sound of her engine as she left the temple.

Belldandy sighed and turned to the smirking redhead. "Arimon, may I speak with you outside please?"

The redhead shrugged before following her outside. Once Belldandy closed the door, she rounded onto her cousin. "I don't understand what is wrong with you! Kazume is a perfectly nice girl! Why are you being so mean to her?"

Arimon rolled his eyes. "She's being just as equally mean back to me. I don't see what the problem is."

Belldandy could feel her patience starting to wear thin. "She was perfectly polite until you went and insulted her. How else did you think she'd react?"

Arimon carelessly shrugged. "She can do whatever she likes, I couldn't care less. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going out for a while."

Belldandy watched helplessly as he lifted himself off the ground and quickly disappeared from view. She was now starting to really worry. Kazume had left in a very bad mood, and Arimon didn't seem to care that he had left such a negative effect on her. She clasped her hands together and gazed into the heavens. She could only pray that things between them would improve and that one-day they could become good friends.

Kazume sped angrily through traffic, barely avoiding merging cars and only just avoiding red lights. Her rage at Arimon had blinded her causing her coordination to be thrown off. She skidded around a corner, losing control of her bike as she was sent sliding into a nearby pole. She groaned in pain as she shakily rose to her feet. Ignoring the stings from the grazes on her arms and legs, she picked her bike back up and remounted. She revved her engine again and took off again at a slightly slower pace, acting as if nothing at happened. Eventually she pulled into the driveway of her apartment. She dismounted her bike, flinching slightly from her wounds. After locking up her vehicle, she limped to the front door, unlocking it before entering. She stumbled into her room, collapsing onto her futon. A painful throb reminded her of her injuries so she forced herself upright to inspect them. Reaching down, she grabbed the end of her grubby jeans and rolled them up past her knees. Large grazes were plastered on both legs with small trickles of blood splattered all the way down to her ankles. She grimaced at the sight; well at least no bones were broken.

She sighed when she realized she had no clue what to do next. She reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. She dialled her best friends number before holding it up to her ear. A few rings later and she heard Megumi's voice."

"_Hey Kazume! You feeling better?"_

She smiled. "Well, depends what you mean, my mood has improved but I need your help…medically."

Her friend's voice turned to concern. _"What do you mean? Did something happen?"_

Kazume chuckled in embarrassment. "Well I was really angry while riding home and I had an incident turning a corner. I lost control of my bike and fell off. I have all these annoying grazes on my legs…can you come help me?"

Megumi's voice immediately turned from concern to horror. _"WHAT? Hang on! Don't move! I'm on my way! KEII! We need to go! Kazume is…-"click"_

Kazume chuckled. Well at least she won't have to wait very long. And she was right, barely fifteen minutes later, a very worried Megumi burst through her bedroom door and upon seeing Kazume's messed up knees, began panicking as she raced around the house collecting things to help her clean her friends injuries. Once she had everything, she scurried back to Kazume's room, to where her unusually calm friend was waiting patiently for her. She quickly sat down and placed the items next to her. She then turned to the injured girl and began treating her wounds. It only took her a few minutes to clean all the blood and bandage her knees. It also made it a lot easier with Kazume sitting perfectly still throughout the entire thing. At one point while she worked, Megumi happened to glance at her best friends face. She was staring distractedly out the window with a far-off expression. She wasn't sure but for a moment she swore she saw a glint of hurt in her eyes. She wondered if this had anything to do with Arimon. This guy had no idea how much his prejudice could be hurting her. Kazume had struggled to make friends her whole life and had finally found somewhere she could make a living. For him to just waltz in and stab her the way he did, Megumi could only imagine how that must have felt to Kazume, who was only trying to be friends. She knew that the anger she was showing towards him was only a substitute to hide the pain she was really feeling. Megumi was scared that one of these days; her friend was in danger of having a mental breakdown.

But Megumi never voiced any of these fears to her. Up until that day Kazume had been cheerful and bubbly. And she didn't want to take that happiness away from her, especially after everything she's been through.

She finished by clipping the last bandage into place. As if on cue, Kazume turned to her and smiled. "Thanks Megumi…I'm sorry for my temper earlier."

The brunette smiled and waved her off. "It wasn't a problem, but I was surprised by how calm you were about the whole thing."

Kazume grinned. "Have you forgotten? I'm a motorbike racer, this isn't the first time I've had an accident."

Megumi grinned back. "But of course, you're quite the trooper than aren't you?

The redhead laughed. "Well I have had my adventures." She then stood up and stretched. "Anyway I hope you don't mind, but I'm going to go and take a walk. They keep my legs healthy and functioning even after a good scrape on the road."

Her friend smiled. "No worries. I'll catch you later then."

Kazume nodded before walking out. She smiled at the bright sun directly above her. The weather had been fairly nice lately, which was strange since they were coming to the end of spring and approaching autumn. But she wasn't complaining; this gave her plenty of time to enjoy the warmth of the golden rays. She leisurely strolled down the path, cheerfully greeting all those that passed her. She walked for a few miles before she reached a large playground. Several children were running around and playing with their friends. This sight brought a slight twinge to Kazume's heart, reminding her of the childhood that she had missed.

"Well, well, enjoying the view are we?"

The new, yet, familiar voice turned her blood to ice. She groaned. Oh hell why did she have to run into him here? Letting out an aggravated sigh, she turned around to meet the gaze of a smirking Arimon. She narrowed her eyes at him.

"What the hell do you want, more excuses to inflate that already overgrown brainless head of yours?"

Arimon glared at her. "Well aren't you just full of smart words? Is that the best you've got, you short-tempered midget?"

Kazume burst out laughing. "Oh wow, is that your worst? Ooh that was harsh! Don't think I'll ever recover from that!"

Arimon glared as she continued to cackle loudly. 'What the hell was up with this girl? Did nothing bother her?' He growled in irritation. "Shut the hell up you stupid COW!"

This only made her laugh more as she mocked him by making a loud 'moo' sound. His temper hit climax as he finally lost control. He stormed up to her and grabbed her arms to peer straight into her eyes. He snarled. "GET OUT OF MY FACE WENCH!"

Her laughter quickly turned into a snarl of her own. "KISS MY ARSE MORON!"

They shared one last glare before stomping into opposite directions, oblivious to the scowling parents and awed children. But Kazume was the only one unaware of him stopping briefly to turn around slightly. He stared curiously at her for a moment. Something about her was off. She was happy and cheerful, free of worry around her friends. But the instant he says the smallest thing to rile her up, he sees the tiniest glint of hurt flash in her eyes. And yet she covers it so well with her anger that he wonders if it's really there. But this thought passed in a flash and just like that he was back to feeling irritated. He shook his head, scolding himself for feeling these ridiculous and unnecessary emotions. 'What is that girl doing to me?'

Kazume strolled quickly out of the park to dash around a corner. Once there, she slid down the wall, defeated. She felt tears prick at the corner of her eyes and a pain in her chest. She would never admit it to anyone, but she hated what was happening between her and Arimon. She had never lost her cool so regularly around a single person before, but even though he irritated her to no end, she didn't hate him. All she wanted was to be his friend. She sensed that he was just as lonely and friendless as she had once been before she met Megumi and the others. She had seen it, the longing in his eyes as she conversed with her friends. The way he stood back, slouched against the wall as if he was labelling himself an outcast. Kazume sighed heavily. What was she doing? Why was she picking fights with him? Why couldn't she be herself and make an effort to be nice? She shook her head. Well she _did _try to begin with; earlier when she had met him she had been polite and friendly. But he pushed her buttons by immediately shooting her down with his pride. She frowned. That had really hurt. He had no idea of the pain that shot through her heart. And now every time he called her a name, she's had to cover herself up by either yelling back or laughing at him like she did earlier. Overwhelmed with guilt, she brought her knees up to her chest and buried her face into her thighs, as a single tear finally broke free and rolled down her cheek.

**(Two weeks later)**

After the harsh encounter in the park, Kazume had agreed with herself that she would try harder to mend things with Arimon. But every time she attempted to get close to him, he would just sneer at her with some new jibe and walk away. Of course she never let him go with a comeback of her own, always left feeling guilty the moment he disappeared from view. And over the past weeks, the insults they exchanged only became more hurtful as each day flew by. He was making this very hard. Her patience was growing thinner with each day and she could feel her mind starting to break. She needed help. She finally decided to have a talk with Belldandy. Normally she would go to Megumi for these problems, but Arimon was Bell's cousin, so maybe she had an idea with how to approach the dog without getting bitten.

So one cloudy afternoon, she finds herself steering into the car park of their grounds. She noticed Arimon leaning against the wall near the front door. She sighs, great here we go again. Dismounting her bike and removing her helmet, she walks up to the front door, doing her best to avoid eye contact with the man who was throwing a sly smirk in her direction. Ignoring him, she lifted her already clenched fist and knocked loudly. A few seconds later, the door slid open to reveal Belldandy's younger sister Skuld. The black haired girl grinned when she saw Kazume.

"Hey Kazume! What brings you here?"

Despite Kazume's irritation with the redhead who was pulling immature faces at her, she smiled fondly at the girl. "Hi Skuld, I was wondering if I could talk to Bell…is she here?"

Skuld nodded. "Sure thing! Ill just go grab her."

While the shorter girl went back inside, Kazume decided she would stay where she was and wait for Belldandy there. Turning around she decided to take a walk around the temple, paying no heed to the redhead who was starting to look annoyed.

"What's the matter Red? Are you chicken?"

Kazume froze in her tracks and slowly turned around to face him. He wasn't wearing his usual, taunting smirk. Instead he was glaring hard at her, his mouth curled into an annoyed frown. She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Don't you have anything better to do than waste my time?"

Her bored tone grated at his nerves. "Shut up! Don't tell me what I can or can't do? You think you can ignore me forever?"

Kazume could feel her mind starting to unwind; she wasn't sure how much more of this she could take. "What in the hell do you want with me?"

Arimon sneered. "To make you see how annoying and pathetic I think you are!"

Something snapped inside her as she finally had enough. She roared at him. "LEAVE ME ALONE! I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU! JUST GO AWAY!"

Her final plea fell on deaf ears and Arimon kept going, neither over them knew what they were saying anymore; both fed up with the other. Which was why Arimon would come to regret his next words.

"Why don't you shut up? Annoying pipsqueak! Do you know how much your voice makes my ears bleed? You're nothing but a worthless, good for nothing, human being! I don't how your parents live with you! Why would anyone want to raise an obnoxious brat like you! If I were your father, I would be rid of you in a heartbeat! THAT'S HOW ANNOYING YOU ARE!"

Silence. The weight of his words hung heavily in the air. Arimon was barely aware of his rant, too blinded by his own rage. He waited for her comeback, anything to continue their usual routine and end with both of them storming away as usual. What he wasn't expecting, though, was Kazume staring at him in shock with tears appearing at the corner of her eyes, where he could clearly see the pain he had just inflicted. Without another word, Kazume walked around him and headed back to the front door, with her head lowered and bangs over her eyes. Confused, Arimon looked behind him in time to see her disappear from view. 'What had just happened? Why was he suddenly overwhelmed with so much guilt? Was she crying?' With these heavy conflicted thoughts, he wandered the opposite direction, thinking about how horribly he must have hurt her.

Belldandy turned her head when a knock sounded on the kitchen door. "Yes? Come in."

The door slid open to reveal her younger sister. She smiled. "Hello Skuld."

Skuld smiled. "Hey sis. Kazume's out the front, she wants to talk to you."

Belldandy nodded. "Alright, thank you."

She paused with her cooking (like turning the stove off so the house doesn't blow up), and made her way outside. When she saw no one, she felt confused until she heard soft muffled sobbing to her right. She looked down to see Kazume crying uncontrollably into her knees. Belldandy immediately kneeled down to the shaking girl. "Kazume? What happened?"

The distraught girl just shook her head and continued to sob. Belldandy turned her head and looked around. She opened her mind and concentrated, until she felt a presence not to far from where she was. Arimon. It was then Belldandy understood, the rivalry between Kazume and her cousin had finally spiralled out of control and now one of them had been extremely hurt. Knowing Kazume just wanted to be left alone, Belldandy set out to find Arimon. She found him seconds later on the exact opposite side of the temple, leaning against the wall and gazing at the sky with a thoughtful expression. Sighing softly she slowly approached him and leaned next to him.

"What did you say Arimon?"

Without averting his eyes from the sky, Arimon repeated his words from earlier. Belldandy shook her head sadly. "Whatever possessed you to say such a thing?"

He shrugged. "I don't know… it all just came tumbling out of my mouth. Maybe I had just run out of things to say."

Belldandy pushed off the wall and stared hard at him. "Well you've really hurt her. You have no idea how much truth was behind those words."

Arimon finally looked at her with confusion. "What do you mean?"

Belldandy's expression softened and she looked away sadly. "Megumi came to me about a week ago, and told me about Kazume's past. Her mother had died giving birth to her, and her father had abandoned her and left her for dead on the street when she was only a young child. She spent her childhood and teenage years in an orphanage, and lived several years alone even after she left." Belldandy paused to look up at Arimon, who was staring at her with wide eyes.

She smiled sadly. "So you see Arimon, until she moved here, she's lived a lonely life. So when she met you, she only wanted to be your friend. But when you insulted her, it really hurt her, so she tried to cover it by starting a rivalry. But I can see she hates it. After every fight you two have had, I see nothing but guilt and shame in her eyes." Belldandy turned slightly. "Come with me, there's something you need to see."

Stunned with everything his cousin had just told him, he followed her around the house until she stopped at a corner. She looked at him and pointed to something. "Look over there…and see the damage you have done."

Gulping slightly at what he might see, Arimon took Belldandy's place and peered around the wall. His eyes widened with shock at the sight before him. There was Kazume, still in the same position Belldandy had found her in. Her arms were tightly wrapped around her legs as her knees rested against her mouth. But it was when his gaze shifted slightly upwards that Arimon felt something in his heart change. Her normally bright brown eyes were dull and shattered. Endless tears poured down her face, making a group of droplets at her feet. Arimon felt awful. It was true he never truly liked humans, but seeing this girl's heartbreak clear as day on her face had split his soul in two. Literally. Compassion, friendship, warmth, concern…all these positive emotions rose to the surface and in an instant he felt like a different person. He felt his demonic side shrinking away as his deity half took over. Now as he stared at the fragile girl, all he wanted was to soothe and comfort her. With a rare smile, he turned to Belldandy.

"Thank you, I'll take it from here."

She smiled and nodded at him. He turned back around and walked towards Kazume, who was unaware of who was approaching her. Cautiously, he knelt down to her level.

"Kazume?"

Her head shot up as she stared at him startled. Realizing whom it was, she scrambled up the wall and sprinted past him to get to her bike. Arimon yelled out desperately. "KAZUME WAIT!"

She gave him a disbelieving look. "Stay away from me!" And before he knew it, she was gone, leaving a cloud of dust behind her. Arimon collapsed to his knees, the weight of what he had done crashing onto his shoulders. He had been so cruel, overtaken by his pride as a demon. That dark side of his had clouded his mind, not allowing him to see the pain she was going through. In some ways she was a lot like him. He never really had any friends growing up either; in fact he still didn't really have anyone except for his cousins. He had always known how kind and compassionate Belldandy was, which was probably why he resented her. He was jealous of her loving nature, and how it was so easy for her to get along with everybody. She had even found the love of a fairly nice guy. Yes, Arimon thought to himself, Keiichi wasn't' half bad when he really thought about it. And neither was his sister, Megumi. He had often seen her and Kazume together and was very envious of their close friendship. But seeing them in his mind now, he couldn't help but smile. The sound of their laughter and giggling echoed in his ears. He focused on the thought of Kazume smiling, and if he were honest with himself, had never really seen her smile properly. He would only see a glimpse, but then she'd notice him and her expression would immediately turn sour. He felt more guilt gnaw at his stomach; this was his fault. This whole drama could've been avoided if he had been nice to her from the beginning. It was his fault that horrible things had been said between them, and now it was his fault that she was heartbroken. He fell to his knees and lifted his head. He opened his mouth and roared, finally releasing the frustration that had been buried deep within him.

**(At the same time, back in the Demon Realm)**

Hild scowled as she watched her tormented nephew mentally tear himself apart. She had a feeling this would happen. That god side of his had finally pushed it's way into his conscience, and why? Because some pathetic little girl had shed some tears.

A presence behind her snapped her out of her thoughts, and she turned to see Mara bowing before her.

"Mara, what do you report? Is it true that Arimon is crumbling?"

Mara nodded. "Yes my lady, I have been somewhat near him. I can sense his heart is beginning to change. That human girl has had a strong effect on him since the moment they met."

Hild frowned. "He better not end up falling for that fire-headed pipsqueak, does he not remember the consequences? I suppose I should've seen this coming…he is half god after all. Just like my daughter."

Her mouth twisted into a devious smile. "Well then…if things start looking bad, then I may have to pay this girl a visit." She smirked as she stared down at the young girl. "Be careful Arimon, or this Kazume maybe just be your own undoing."

The very girl on both Arimon and Hilds' minds had just arrived home. Without bothering to lock up her bike, Kazume stumbled into the apartment and towards her room. The tears had stopped a little while ago, but the sting was still fresh and she felt emotionally drained. She heard Megumi call out but she was too tired to answer. Just as she lay down onto her futon, her door slid open and Megumi poked her head inside.

"Hey, you're back already? That wasn't a very long talk with Belldandy."

Kazume shifted her head to gaze sadly at her best friend, the fresh tearstain marks still evident on her face. Her voice cracked at she whispered. "M...Megu…mi." New tears threatened to break out which had her best friend by her side in an instant.

"Kazume? What's wrong? Who did this to you?"

With a weak, tired voice she relayed to Megumi what had transpired between her and Arimon. After hearing the hurtful words he had said, Megumi clenched her jaw in anger. "That BASTARD! I am going to KILL HIM! Insensitive jerk!"

A hand on her arm stopped her. She looked down into the pleading eyes of an exhausted redhead, who shook her head. "No Megumi…don't go, I just need you here right now."

Her best friend nodded before lying down next to her. Kazume leaned into her while Megumi wrapped her arms around her in a sisterly embrace. She stayed there, holding her friend, whispering comforting words to her until finally, Kazume's eyes drooped closed as she drifted off into a dreamless slumber. Making sure she was probably asleep, Megumi slowly released her and lifted herself up. She reached over to grab the blanket and placed it over her friends sleeping form. She gave Kazume one more gaze before she stood to her feet and walked out of her room and towards the phone. She needed to have words with a certain male redhead.

Arimon flinched as Urd and Skuld both shrieked at him. Belldandy had decided that as a punishment for making Kazume cry, he would have to endure an hour-long lecture from both of her sisters at once. He had begged for anything else other than having to be subjected to them, but Belldandy was merciless and had refused. Now he sat cross-legged on the floor of the tearoom as the two goddesses yelled, flailed their arm and even sometime smacking him across the back of the head. He was at least grateful neither was using their magic or inventions on him. He shivered at the thought. He glanced to the side to see Keiichi watching everything with a helpless expression. He grinned at the man, silently telling him that it was okay and that he deserved it. And it was true, he was willing to go through every punishment his cousins could think up, and he still wouldn't have made up for how much he had hurt Kazume.

After what seemed like an eternity of what sounded like two banshees shrilling in his ears, he finally walked out with his ears ringing loudly, rubbing the inside of them with the tip of his pointy finger. He vaguely heard the sound of the phone ringing in the background but didn't pay much attention to it. But a minute later, Keiichi stuck his head outside. "Hey Arimon, you have a phone call. It's Megumi and uh…she doesn't sound too happy."

Arimon gulped. Oh great, now he has to hear it from her best friend. With knots in his stomach, he walked inside and took the receiver from Keiichi. Taking a deep breath he slowly lifted it to his ear. "H…Hi Megumi" He immediately pulled the phone away from his ear when he heard her enraged yell.

"DON'T YOU 'HI MEGUMI' ME! YOU INSIGNIFICANT INCONSIDERATE WANKER! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FOR BREAKING KAZUMES HEART! IF I WERE THERE RIGHT NOW I WOULD TEAR YOU INTO TINY LITTLE PIECES! DO YOU HEAR ME JERK?"

Arimon waited for her to stop before bringing the phone back to his ear. "Yes, I hear you I know what I did was terrible."

There was a slight pause before she replied in a much calmer and surprised voice. _"You…you do?"_

He chuckled. "Yeah…listen, I realize how immature I was before. My pride got in the way of everything and I took it out on Kazume. She's the last person that deserves any of my crap but she ended up being the victim anyway. I only wish I could take back every word I said. I want nothing more than to make amends with her, but I think I'm the last person she wants to talk to."

A long sigh sounded from the other end. _"It's good to hear you've had a change of heart, but it won't fix the damage that's already been done. You'll need to give her some space for the moment. Wait until she's at least acting a little happier, then maybe you can try talking to her. But for now…leave her be."_

Arimon nodded. "Very well…but is there any way I can still be there for her without having to talk?"

There was silence for a moment. He jumped when she suddenly yelled. _"YES! There is! About three weeks from now there will be a motorbike race! Kazume will be representing our Auto Club! Why don't you come and cheer her on?"_

Arimon furrowed his brows. "Wait…I knew she rode a motorbike around but I didn't know she was a racer."

Megumi chuckled. _"You bet she's a racer! And she's damn good at it too! The girl is unbeatable!"_

He laughed. "Alright, count me in. I'll be there."

"Sweet! Well I better go, she'll kill me if she finds me talking to you."

He nodded. "Alright, it was nice talking to you Megumi. I'll catch you later."

He waited for the 'click' before hanging up himself. He stood staring at the phone, deep in thought. The race was in three weeks. Maybe if Kazume saw him there, she would give him a chance to explain. But Megumi was right, for now he needed to give her some space.

At that moment, the girl on Arimon's mind slowly stirred from her sleep. Her tired brown eyes flickered open. She hadn't been able to sleep very long; her mind still conflicted with the events that had occurred earlier that day. Arimon's words still echoed inside her mind, haunting her even in her dreams. Kazume sighed tiredly. She had no time to worry about her personal problems; she needed to focus on the race in the upcoming weeks. Sitting up, she lifted her arms and stretched them above her head, her shoulders letting out several cracks. She threw the covers off her and stood up, grabbing some clothes before walking out to have a shower. She had a long night ahead of her.

**(Two hours later)**

The sun was slowly setting as Kazume drove into the racing arena, her entrance announced loudly by the roar of her motorbikes engine. Several heads turned to stare at the newcomer, the area turning somewhat quiet. Kazume ignored them and made her way to her pit stop where the Auto Club was waiting for her. She smiled when she saw Megumi waving her over to the garage. She steered her vehicle undercover before switching off the ignition and dismounting. She turned around to see her best friend walking up to her with a large grin.

"Hey Kazume! Glad you made it! You ready to show these guys what you can do?"

Kazume laughed. "Geez Megumi, it's only a practise run, the actual race isn't for another few weeks."

Her friend shrugged. "I know that, I meant those idiots in the Club. They're not expecting much because you're a girl. Just wait until they see what you're made of!" As she said this she punched her fist into her palm.

Kazume grinned. "Well I guess I better get out there then. Keii and Bell here?"

Megumi nodded. "Yeah they're here, in fact Bell's gonna be the one to start you off."

She smiled. "That's good then, I'll go say hello to her and Keii before I get started."

The two friends strolled outside to greet the rest of the Club. Kazume walked over to the stands to say hello to Keiichi and Belldandy. As she talked to her friends, movement in the corner of her eye caught her attention. She glanced over to see the slouched figure of Arimon sitting on the top stairs, gazing blankly at the racetrack. Kazume raised an eyebrow, what was he doing just sitting there? Why was he even here, surely he didn't come to watch her? That was impossible, after everything that had happened between them, she was positive he hated her. Deciding to pay no more heed to him, she turned back to the group.

"Hey I'm going to go ahead and get started on practise. I'll see you guys when I'm finished."

Megumi leapt forward to her best friend's side. "I'll come with you!"

The two girls separated from the group to head back to the garage. As they chatted away, they were unaware of Arimon following them with his eyes, his stare lingering on the perky redhead.

Arimon watched the best friends walk along the track, before disappearing from view as they went inside. He sighed. He knew she had noticed him and had chosen to ignore him. He was expecting this behaviour from her, but he couldn't help the small painful twist in his stomach. Now more than ever he just wanted to make things right.

A few minutes later, the girls emerged again, only this time Kazume was wheeling her bike onto the tracks while Megumi made her way back to the stands. He leaned forward attentively as Kazume placed her helmet on and mounted her bike. As she revved her engine, Belldandy walked out onto the track with a black and white flag. All went quiet as she raised the flag for a few seconds then quickly brought it down. Arimon watched in amazement as Kazume took off at an alarming speed. Both her and the bike quickly became a dark blur as she raced through the course. This was no ordinary race; there were twists, turns and sharp corners everywhere. And let's not forget all of the huge stunt hills placed all over the course. Arimon wondered how she was going pull through this, but during the next few minutes that doubtful thought was immediately wiped from this mind. Her skill on that bike was outstanding; her first obstacle was a ridiculously sharp turn as she leaned to her right, her side dangerously close to the road. But she expertly kept her balance and easily made the corner. Next up were the jumps. As she came up to them, she turned her handle to increase her speed. She sped up the small hill and launched herself in the air. Arimon's jaw almost hit the floor as she lifted her legs off her bike to perform a perfect handstand on the handles, before smoothly falling back down to sit gracefully on her seat just as the bike landed back onto the road. Arimon was impressed, Kazume definitely knew what she was doing as he watched her easily complete the rest of the course without breaking a sweat; the Auto Club was definitely going to win in three weeks from now, especially with a racer like this. A small smile appeared on his face as her friends and the other club approached her, cheering loudly.

Arimon stayed where he was as everyone else left. His mind was still replaying over again how amazing Kazume had been. She had such a small, delicate figure and she was able to pull of incredible and dangerous stunts like the ones he saw just earlier. He shook his head, that girl never ceased to amaze him. Even when he was verbally abusing her, she would take him head on and shoot right back. A new feeling arose in his chest as he imagined her in his mind…what in the hell was happening to him?

He answered his own question the very next day. He was sitting on the temple veranda, gazing blankly at the partly cloudy sky. Belldandy was standing near him, humming a gentle tone as she hung out the laundry. But despite the tranquillity, Arimon's mind was the exact opposite. He was still trying to figure out why he couldn't stop thinking about a certain redhead. She had done nothing but give him the cold shoulder (not that he didn't deserve it) and yet she was constantly inside his head. His eyes narrowed slightly, why couldn't he stop thinking about her?

"Hey Belldandy!"

Arimon turned his head to see the very same redhead approach his cousin. He silently watched as the two talked quietly but was startled when Kazume suddenly threw her head back and laughed. And then it was like everything became clear. He felt himself become stunned as the bubbly girl transformed from an average girl, to an amazingly beautiful woman. His body froze as he, for the first time since he met her, looked at her in a whole new light. Her smile was bright and blinding, as it seemed to rival the suns rays. Her brown eyes sparkled; he could only imagine how breathtaking they would look under the moonlight. And then there was her hair. The colours seemed to combine together to create the perfect likeness of a sunset, but held the strong bright embers of a roaring fire.

Arimon hastily stood up and walked away, refusing to look at her anymore. What was going on? He practically ran back inside the house, oblivious to the two girls staring after him with confusion.

**(Two weeks later)**

The following weeks after his mental breakdown with Kazume, Arimon now did his own part in avoiding her like the plague. Every time he so much as glanced at her, this rumbling burn would appear in his chest and he was forced to walk the other way.

On the slightly brighter side, this made it easier to fulfil his promise to Megumi about keeping his distance from Kazume. The redhead had noticed his sudden withdrawal but gave no complaints. In fact she was a lot happier since the day she met him, which only worsened his gut wrenching guilt.

The silence between them had been carrying on for two whole weeks, and honestly it was starting to drive Arimon insane. He wanted to find Megumi and beg her to let him talk to her. This tension was becoming ridiculous; he hated being on Kazume's bad side, which was somewhat ironic since that was the only side of hers he'd ever been on. And now that he saw her in a more positive way, he was aching to know how it would feel to be her friend. So with renewed determination, Arimon found himself outside Kazume's apartment knocking loudly on their door. He heard footsteps approach before it was pulled open and he was met with the surprised face of Megumi. The brunette frantically looked around them before ushering him inside and closing the door behind him.

"Arimon, what are you doing here? You're lucky Kazume isn't home!"

He ignored her last statement. "I can't stand it any longer Megumi, this ridge between us is unbearable. I need to apologize to her and tell her how I feel."

Megumi sighed. "Fine you can talk to her, luckily for you she'll probably be willing to listen. But just in case, if she does choose to keep ignoring you, use that chance to tell her everything."

Arimon nodded when suddenly the sound of an engine was heard coming into the driveway. Megumi pushed him towards the door. "That's Kazume, now's your chance."

He nodded again and opened the door. His gaze landed on Kazume who was wearing a pair of mechanic over alls. 'Where had she just come from?' He watched as she pulled a metal box out from some bushes and opened it. She dug around for a few seconds before pulling out some random tool he didn't recognise. For the next few minutes he stared at her while she happily fiddled around with her bike. He smiled slightly when she went to wipe her forehead, leaving a streak of black grease on her skin.

'Now's my chance.'

Arimon took cautious steps towards her, finally stopping when he was only a metre away from her. Kazume had halted with what she was doing to glance at him, but when she saw who it was she turned back to her bike and continued working. Remembering Megumi's advice, he took this as his only opportunity to voice his feelings. He took one extra small step before crouching down so that he was eye level with her.

Arimon allowed his heart to take over as he opened his mouth and words came pouring out.

"Kazume…I know that I hurt you. And I know saying sorry isn't going to fix anything especially after what I said to you. But you have to believe me; I didn't mean any of it. That man you met that day, that isn't me. That was someone, looking back now, I don't even recognise. And when I think about how I insulted you, it makes me sick to the stomach. It was cruel and unfair to you, not to mention hypocritical. After you had walked away, Belldandy came out to talk to me. She told me about your past, and how much you have gone through. It reminded me of myself."

By now he had Kazume's attention. She had put down her tools and was facing him, listening intently to his heartfelt apology. He smiled at this and continued.

"I also had a rough childhood, if you could call it one. My aunty raised me; who was rather strict. I have no idea who my parents are and I've never really had any friends. So when I saw you and Megumi, I guess I was just jealous. The two of you share a bond that I've never had; if I didn't know any better I'd swear you were sisters. I was envious of your friendship with her and it brought out a side of me that I'm not proud of."

He paused again to see her reaction. Her expression was still very unreadable, but her eyes were fixated on him. He allowed himself to openly smile, wanting her to see how open he was willing to be.

"So…are you going to say something? Feel free to yell and scream at me for being a arse, hell you can punch me if you like." He turned his face to the side to permit her to slug his jaw. Kazume shook her head sadly and finally spoke.

"I don't understand…why are you being so nice to me all of a sudden? I thought you hated me."

Arimon stared at her in surprise. "What? Why would I hate you?"

She lowered her eyes slightly. "What you said really hit home…not because it was mean; but because it was true. So after that I couldn't face you anymore, let alone look at you. Just those few words brought back that one memory of my dad abandoning me, and it kept coming back each time I looked at you. But it didn't seem like you cared how I felt, so to me it was like you really couldn't stand to be around me, especially after the last couple of weeks."

Arimon's guilt multiplied as he listened. "So…you didn't hate me either?"

She shook her head again. "I never hated you, I couldn't stand all the fighting we were doing. But you were making it very hard so I just covered how bad I felt with insults of my own. But in reality, all I wanted was to be your friend."

Arimon couldn't believe it. She didn't hate or despise him. He sighed with relief. "I'm glad, because I never hated you either. After our last fight, I wanted nothing more than to apologize over and over again. But Megumi told me that I had hurt you too much and that you needed some space. So for the last two weeks that's what I've been doing, waiting for the right moment to talk to you so I can tell you…just how truly sorry I am…for everything."

Kazume stared at him. "You were just giving me space? So then…what were you doing at the racetracks that other day?"

He smiled and gave her a simple response. "Showing my support."

Her eyes widened in disbelief at his declaration. To show her he was serious, he offered her his hand. "Please let me be your friend Kazume, for both of our sakes. I promise I will be by your side a hundred percent. I will never ever hurt you again. And I will also give you my word to come to your race and cheer for you…like a good friend should."

Kazume's eyes darted from his face to his hand, hesitating. She locked her gaze with his to see if his was sincere. She was surprised to find nothing but kindness and compassion staring straight back at her. His gentle expression was definitely something she wasn't used to, but if he was trying so hard to be friends then she needed to give him a chance.

Giving him a small, shy smile, she finally accepted his offer and gently placed her hand in his. The boy and girl were now starting a brand new friendship. But the story for them was only just beginning. In the coming year for them, they would go places and accomplish many things together. And as they become closer, they would find their friendship gradually intertwining into an everlasting bond.

**End of Chapter**


	3. The Blossoming Of A Friendship

Chapter 3 – The Blossoming Of A Friendship

Megumi Morisato smiled through the window as she watched Kazume and Arimon shake hands. She sighed with relief at the thought of this feud finally coming to an end. Looking again at her best friends face, she was surprised to see her giving the man next to her a friendly, genuine smile. She shook her head, that girl was something else. Leave it to Kazume to be able to befriend a man that only a few weeks ago was her greatest rival. Megumi smiled softly one last time at the pair outside before turning away and leaving them alone.

Meanwhile, outside, the two new friends had finally released their handshake. Kazume gave him another shy smile before turning back to the bike. Arimon watched her as she worked.

"You're pretty good at that."

The girl shrugged. "Not really…I only know the basics. I prefer to race."

He cocked an eyebrow. "What you're doing here is only basic?"

Kazume nodded. "Yup, this is nothing compared to other stuff I've seen."

"I see."

They fell into an uncomfortable silence. Arimon awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck, picking his brain for something to say to her. This was a lot harder than he thought; he had spent the last two weeks aching to be friends with her and now that he was, he struggled to find topics to talk about. Damn it all.

Luckily for him though, the redhead in front of him didn't seem to have that problem.

"Hey, when I'm done here why don't you come inside for dinner?"

He grinned. "I'd be happy to."

She grinned back at him. "Great! Now let's see if this has done the trick."

She put her tools down and picked up a key that was lying near her feet. She inserted it into the ignition and turned it clockwise. A smooth rumble was heard before the engine gently purred to life. Kazume smirked with satisfaction.

"Well that does it!"

Arimon nodded in appreciation. "Mighty fine work, she's sounds good as new."

She laughed modestly, rubbing the back of her neck. "Haha, well thanks. Anyway let's get inside, I'm sure Megumi already has dinner made; knowing her."

They rose to their feet and Kazume made sure to turn off the engine and pull the key out. She shoved it into her pocket, bent down to pick up the toolbox before heading inside the apartment, Arimon following close behind her.

Once they were inside, they were greeted with the pleasantry fumes of a freshly made dinner and the chef grinning widely from her place at the kitchen table. They joined her and the three enjoyed the remainder of the evening in each other's company while they consumed their meal. At one point Megumi gave an attempt at a joke, which had Arimon smirking in amusement and poor Kazume bent over in stitches. Their chatter and laughter continued for several more hours until it was obvious how late it was, the girls were becoming sleepy and Arimon needed to head back to the temple. While Megumi cleaned up, Kazume walked him to the door to say goodnight.

Arimon turned back around to bow politely to her. "Thank you for tonight. I had a really fun time."

She smiled at him. "Not a problem, we should most definitely do it again. I enjoyed your company."

He returned her smile. "Absolutely, until then, you have a good night Kazume."

"Yes, you too… Arimon."

She smiled once more before walking back inside and closing the door. Arimon waited a moment to make sure she was gone, before lifting off the ground and soaring into the sky. As he flew back to the temple, his thoughts went back a few minutes earlier to when he was bidding goodbye to Kazume. That was the first time she had addressed him by his name, and the way it had sounded coming from her had sent a warm feeling through his body. Finally spotting the temple in the distance, he pushed himself forward, all the while with a giddy, satisfied smirk on his face.

Belldandy was sitting quietly in Keiichi's room, her boyfriend sleeping peacefully with his head on her lap. She held a short novel in one hand while using the other to gently stroke her fingers through his hair. The goddess paused in her reading when she heard the front door slide open. She put the book down then gently, lifted Keiichi's head to replace her lap with one of his pillows. Being careful not to wake him, she stood up and quietly left the room. As she slid the door closed, she turned her head in time to see her cousin making his way down the corridor.

When he was close enough, she was surprised to find a content smile on his face. She tilted her head questioningly. "Arimon?"

When he looked at her, she asked. "What happened today? You seem to be in higher spirits."

Arimon smiled. "I had a talk with Kazume and we were able to sort out our differences. So I guess you can say we're more or less friends now. I've just spent the night with her and Megumi and…" He chuckled. "…I must say they're a very enlightening pair of girls."

Belldandy beamed. "This is wonderful news! I'm so happy to hear you two are getting along."

Arimon grinned. "Yeah, it feels kinda great."

Because of they're immortal status, sleep was never a necessity that the two cousins needed. So with the whole night ahead, they spent several hours in Belldandy's room just casually talking and catching up on each other's lives. Arimon hadn't seen Belldandy since he was a young boy, so he was glad to spend some quality time with her especially after all these years. They talked and talked until eventually the gentle glow of the sun shone through the window as it slowly rose to bring about the new day. Arimon smiled at the sight, this day was the start of many to a bright future and for the first time in his life was eager to see where this path would take him.

**(One Week Later)**

Kazume breathed in deeply, her mind focused on the task at hand. The much anticipated race she had been waiting weeks for was now only minutes away. She closed her eyes and concentrated on what she needed to do out there. She had friends who were counting on her and there was no way on earth she was going to let them down.

"Feeling nervous?"

Her eyes snapped open to see Arimon grinning at her, his amethyst eyes twinkling.

She smirked confidently. "Of course not, why would I be?"

"Well you seemed pretty far away for a minute there, thought maybe you were getting cold feet."

She snorted. "As if, I'm gonna go out there and kick arse, just you wait."

He grinned. "I look forward to the arse-kicking."

Kazume smiled at him. Ever since their talk a week ago, Arimon had been nothing but an amazing friend to her. At first it had been incredibly awkward, neither knew what to say and that mind-jabbing fact that they were now friends was barely registering in their minds. But over the last week they grew more comfortable with each other and their conversations became more relaxed. But it didn't stop there; Arimon was there for her through everything. When she laughed, he would laugh right along with her, and when she was sad, he wouldn't hesitate to comfort her until she felt one hundred percent better. And on one freakishly cold night, he was a complete gentleman, offering his coat and rubbing her arms in an attempt to keep her warm. To begin with she thought his acts of kindness was purely for the sake of making up for the rough start. But after voicing this concern to him, he had assured her that that wasn't the case and that he genuinely cared for her as a friend and enjoyed her company. Well the feeling was definitely mutual; she rather liked spending time with him as well.

"Hey…Kazume? Hello! You alive in there?"

Kazume was forced back to reality only to see Arimon's face inches away from hers, causing her to jolt back in surprise. "W...What?"

Her redhead friend laughed. "Wow, the lights were on but there was nobody home!"

She glared at him. "Oh shut the hell up."

"All contestants, please make your way to the starting line!"

The two friends turned their head in the direction of the announcement. Kazume breathed in deeply. "Well…here goes nothing."

Arimon held his hand up for her to take. "Go get 'em Tiger."

She grinned and took his hand in a tight grip. "You betcha."

They exchanged one final smile before releasing their hands. Kazume placed her helmet on, revved her bike and rode out to join the other racers. The sounds were somewhat muffled inside her helmet, but she swore she could vaguely here Megumi loudly screaming her name, making her grin with confidence, yup she was totally going to win this thing.

As Kazume took her place, Arimon made himself comfortable on a seat next to a hyperactive Megumi who was on her feet and cheering very loudly for her best friend, causing Arimon to quietly chuckle.

"Are you ready racers? On your mark…get set…"

A loud bang echoed all around the tracks, signalling the start of the race. The crowds' volume increased as the bikers all took off down the track. Kazume managed to scrape third place in the first few seconds, with only a small distance behind the two who were leading. She pulled the handle further downwards, forcing her bike to speed up, rapidly approaching the others. Just as she passed the guy in front of her, she looked ahead to see she was closing in on a huge ramp.

"And the Auto Club racer 'Miyazaki' has caught up and put herself in second place, but with this big jump coming up, will she be able to maintain her position?"

Arimon watched intently as Kazume urged her bike to move faster. She was tied in first with her opponent as they sped up the ramp and launched into the air. He held his breath as the guy next to her attempted to throw her off by lifting his legs to the side to kick her off her bike. But Kazume was prepared; she dodged his attack by jumping up and crouching on the seat before pushing the bike down and her self up. The crowd watched amazed as she once again performed her handstand on the handles, only this time with the bike facing directly upwards, the two of them creating a perfect vertical line. Her opposer gawked in awe as the bike levelled itself down back onto the road at the end of the jump, it's rider landing smoothly back on it, now putting them in the lead.

"What an amazing performance! 'Miyazaki is now in front after a remarkable stunt! But it's not over yet folks! She still has a long way to go!"

Arimon smiled proudly. After that he doubted there was any chance of her screwing up the rest of the race. And he was right. The next few jumps Kazume flew through with ease. She showed her stuff by performing flips, stances and other stunts that awed the crowd. As she came onto the final corner, another racer who had managed to barely keep up with her tactics, appeared at her side. The bend before the finish was the same sharp turn she had practised many times before. The other rider steered into her to force her offcourse, but failed to see her devious smirk. She released her handle slightly to abruptly slow down. Her opponent didn't see this coming and leaned too far over in his surprise of her sudden move. He lost control of his bike and went spiralling the opposite direction, while Kazume took this chance to race around him and take the sharp bend without any interference. The Auto Club roared as she passed the finishing line.

"AND THAT'S IT! YOUR WINNER! KAZUME MIYAZAKI FROM THE AUTO CLUB! LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! WHAT AN INCREDIBLE RACE! SEEMS WE HAVE A NEW CHAMPION!"

Kazume groaned in irritation from the announcer, did he have to yell like that? He was using a friggin microphone. But she paid no more mind to it when Megumi and the other members of the Auto Club swamped her. She laughed as they lifted her up onto their shoulder, chanting her name over and over. The judges came over and handed her the trophy, to which she held triumphantly over her head. Kazume looked behind everyone and saw Arimon standing by himself, grinning widely at her. She grinned back, and told the others to let her down. Once they had lowered her back to the ground, she ran towards him and flung herself at him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. Arimon caught her midair and spun her around, the two laughing happily. He put her back down, turned around and gestured for her to jump onto his back. She willingly did so and leapt onto him, one arm around his neck and the other waving her trophy victoriously into the sky. Inside her mind, Kazume was happier than ever. This was everything she had asked for her entire life, and now she could live this new life with her friends, especially with Megumi and Arimon, the two greatest friends she could have ever asked for.

The days following Kazume's victory consisted of many all night parties, with the majority of her friends becoming smashed beyond help. Kazume, Megumi, Arimon, Belldandy and Keiichi were the only ones who remained sober while the rest were usually knocked out by the time midnight rolled around. But the festivities soon wavered and things become normal again.

Like many of the nights before, Kazume and Arimon took the chance to walk home together, the latter insisting he make sure she arrived home safely. After being convinced, Kazume had lent her bike to Megumi to take home, who eagerly took the offer, being anxious to get home and sleep. Keiichi rode home on his own vehicle, with Belldandy in the sidecar next to him. One by one everyone went their separate ways, until Kazume and Arimon were left alone. The streets were quiet and peaceful as they walked side by side, chatting endlessly about anything and everything. Soon Kazume's apartment appeared in sight, signalling the end of their time together. Arimon stayed with her until she was safely at the front door. But before going inside, Kazume surprised him by stepping forward and giving him a tight goodnight hug. He stiffened in shock but quickly relaxed and returned her hug. After a few seconds, she backed away, gave him one last cheeky grin, which he returned with a smile of his own, before stepping inside and softly closing the door behind her. Arimon stood there grinning for a minute before turning around and heading home as well.

**(A few weeks later)**

Kazume was startled awake to the sound of Megumi's glass-shattering shriek. She sat up in her bed, feeling confused and disorientated from having been awoken so suddenly. She got out of bed and walked sleepily out of her room and down the hall into their small living room. There she found her best friend, agitated beyond words as she yelled into her phone.

"Megumi?" Kazume asked, rubbing sleep from her eyes.

The angry brunette whipped around to look at her half dead roommate. Her face turned to horror when she saw how tired Kazume looked.

"Oh Kazume I'm so sorry! Did I wake you?"

The redhead shook her head. "It's ok I needed to get up anyway…who are you talking to?"

Megumi growled. "It's just my useless brother! He's just…urgh…IMPOSSIBLE!" She shouted the last word into her phones receiver before hanging up on the now deafened Keiichi.

Kazume giggled. "Aw come on Megumi, what's he done to put you in such a bad mood?"

The brunette rolled her eyes. "Being pathetic that's what! Apparently the anniversary for the day him and Bell met is coming up and he wants to do something special."

Kazume smiled. "But that's so sweet! There's nothing wrong with that."

Megumi snorted. "Except for the fact that he has no clue what he's doing!"

Now Kazume was confused. "What do you mean?"

She definitely wasn't expecting Megumi's next words. "HE'S PLANNING ON PROPOSING!"

Kazume felt her jaw drop. "He…he's going to ask her to marry him?"

Her friend nodded. "YES! He has no idea what a huge mistake he's making!"

Kazume raised an eyebrow. "How is this a mistake? It's not like they're underage, and they've been together for a long time. It's obvious how much they love each other."

Megumi shook her head. "That's not the problem. A while ago I spoke about this to Belldandy, and the way she responded was definitely not what I expected."

Flashback**

"_Hey Belldandy can I talk to you for a minute?"_

_The kind woman turned and smiled at her guest. "Of course Megumi, what can I do for you?"_

_Megumi sighed, struggling to find the right words. "Well…it's just…it's about Keiichi."_

_Belldandy's eyes glimmered with worry at her boyfriend's name. "What about him…is he hurt?"_

_Megumi chuckled at her concerned behaviour. "No he's fine, but I wanted to ask a serious question."_

_Belldandy smiled. "Alright, what is it you wanted to ask me?"_

_Megumi leaned against the wall and crossed her arms. "What are your true feelings towards my brother?" At Belldandy's surprised look she continued. "With him it's so easy to see just how in love with you he is."_

_Belldandy's eyes softened. "There is no questioning my feelings for Keiichi, I am very much in love with him."_

"_Then would you say yes if he proposed to you?"_

_Megumi's sudden question caught Belldandy off guard. Hey eyes widened as she stared at the brunette. "You mean…marriage?"_

_The other girl nodded. "It's been a few years Bell, and I don't think Keiichi sees himself settling down with anyone else. So just don't be too shocked if he does ask."_

_Belldandy's shocked expression melted into a sad one and she shook her head. "I'm afraid that wouldn't be possible."_

_Now it was Megumi's turn to be surprised. This was the last thing she expected to hear. She pushed off the wall to fully face Belldandy. "What? But I thought you said you loved him!"_

_Belldandy sighed. "I do love him…very much. But there is something large at stake that I am unable to reveal. It's too complicated to explain, but unfortunately the situation will not allow a bond such as marriage to come into our lives." Tears welled up in her eyes. "I'm sorry Megumi, but it's just not meant to be."_

_Megumi watched stunned as the now sobbing Belldandy fled from the room, with tears streaming down her face, leaving the brunette more confused than ever._

_End Flashback **_

Kazume frowned as Megumi finished the story. "Poor Belldandy, it's seems she wants nothing more than marry Keii, but something big is holding her back."

Her best friend let out a long frustrated sigh. "Only problem is that I have no clue what it could be. I've even asked Urd and Skuld and they were just as vague about it as Bell was."

Kazume bit her lip in thought. "Hmm, maybe if I asked Arimon, he's Belldandy's cousin so surely he must know _something."_

Megumi nodded in agreement. "Good idea, I'll ring Keiichi again and keep trying to talk him out of it. If he proposes he's only setting himself up for heartbreak."

Kazume placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry too much, I'm sure everything will be alright." She gave her friend one more comforting smile before standing up and walking back to her room to freshen up.

**(A Couple Of Hours Later)**

After she had showered and dressed, Kazume had called the temple asking to speak with Arimon. When he came to the phone she told him she needed to speak with him and asked if they could meet up somewhere. He had agreed and now she found herself wandering towards there designated meeting place. A few more minutes and she reached her destination, which just happened to be the very same park that held bitter memories for the both of them. She smiled when she saw he was already there waiting for her, sitting patiently on an empty bench. Arimon's head turned in her direction and grinned when seeing the redhead approaching him.

He stood up to greet her. "Good morning."

She grinned. "And a good morning to you!"

He smiled. "So what did you want to talk to me about?"

Kazume's smile vanished and she sighed, deciding to cut straight to the chase. "Keiichi is planning to propose to Belldandy."

Arimon's jaw dropped. "WHAT?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Why do you sound just as horrified as Megumi did earlier?"

He rubbed the back of his head in frustration. "Because this is really, really bad. It wouldn't be good if he goes through with it."

She threw her hands up impatiently. "Oh gosh not you too!"

Arimon stared at her. "What?"

Kazume sighed. "Megumi told me she asked Belldandy about it a little while ago. She asked her what she would say if Keiichi ever asked her to marry him. She said she couldn't for a really important reason but she never said why!"

Arimon stayed silent. He knew exactly why. It was because Belldandy was a First Class Goddess, a solemn duty that prevented her from staying permanently on Earth. Which also meant that she would eventually have to return to heaven someday, so marrying a mortal was simply out of the question. Arimon frowned as he thought of Keiichi; the poor guy would have his heart torn to shreds, which is why he needed to stop him from making a big mistake. But the problem right now was Kazume, she had no clue of their deity status, wasn't even sure if she even believed in Gods and Demons. He knew he couldn't keep her in the dark forever, but for now he needed to keep this a secret.

Stepping forward, he placed his hands on her shoulders. "Kazume, I know how much you want to help. But I need you to trust me. I know why Belldandy can't marry him, so I need you to let me talk to Keiichi. Please."

Kazume looked at him as he gazed intently at her, silently begging for her to understand. She gave into his pleading look and nodded. "Alright. I'll leave it to you. I do trust you Arimon, I just don't want to see Keiichi get hurt."

He smiled at how kind she was. "Don't you worry, I'll have it sorted out. In the meantime though, why don't you go home and be with Megumi? I'm sure she's flipping out more than anybody over this."

Kazume grinned as the memory of her hysteric friend from this morning came to mind. "Yeah, she is, but she means well." She giggled. "Even if it means yelling at her brother over the phone."

Arimon chuckled. "Now that's a entertaining image. Well I'll head back and talk to Keiichi. You alright heading back home?"

She smiled at him. "I'm fine, it's only a few minutes away. I'll catch you later." She waved goodbye as she walked away. Arimon waited until she disappeared from view before heading back himself. He felt bad keeping the truth from Kazume, but to be honest he was scared by how she would take it. Half of himself was demonic, and the last thing he wanted was to scare her away, especially now when he'd come to care about her so much. Thoughts of his demon self reminded him of his Aunt. The thought of her warning hadn't crossed his mind in several weeks, but the time he's spent on earth, he's found himself caring less and less about losing his immortality. Belldandy was right when she had defended the human race; the people here were incredible and wanted nothing more than to live their lives peacefully. Again, a certain fiery redhead crossed his mind. If he were to lose everything and be forced to live on earth, then at least he would have a girl like Kazume there with him. By now, he couldn't imagine his life without her in it.

A few minutes passed by before he flew down and landed on the soft grass of the temple grounds. He took long strides to the door, his long red coat flowing behind him. He pushed it open, slid it shut behind him and walked down the hall, heading straight for Keiichi's room. Once there, he lifted his hand and knocked loudly with his knuckles. There was no answer, but Arimon could swear he heard movement inside. Reaching inside the gap, he pushed the door open only to gawk at what was inside. Keiichi was indeed inside his room, but he wasn't alone. He had his back against the wall, with Belldandy sitting in between his legs, the two sharing a deep, intimate kiss.

Arimon stared in shock; well this was a scenario he definitely wasn't expecting to walk in on. This also meant Urd and Skuld must've not been home, Skuld would've never let Keiichi advance this far with her.

Deciding to let his presence be known, but regretting breaking their rare moment, Arimon cleared his throat. As if he had been sprayed with freezing cold water, Keiichi's eyes snapped open and he rapidly pulled out of the kiss, throwing his hands up in surrender.

"SKULD IT'S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!"

Belldandy stared at him in alarm but the sound of someone's laughter made her and Keiichi turn their heads to see Arimon, leaning on the wall for support as he lost it laughing.

Belldandy stared at her cousin. "Arimon? Are you ok?"

Arimon put up a hand for them to give him a minute to calm down. After he managed to stop laughing and catch his breath, he turned to them with a wide grin. "Wow Keii, never knew how scared you were of a little girl."

Keiichi had the decency to look annoyed and embarrassed. "It's not her I'm scared of, it's the scary weapons she's apparently invented to use on me every time I try and get close to Belldandy."

Arimon smirked. "Well from what I saw earlier, you two must not be able to spend much time together." He winked as he said this.

Belldandy's face flushed bright red while Keiichi looked awkwardly at the ground. Their embarrassed expressions only added to Arimon's amusement. But he remembered why he was there and his face turned serious.

"Belldandy, if you wouldn't mind, I need to speak to Keiichi privately."

Belldandy nodded and stood up to leave, but not before giving her boyfriend one last gentle peck on the lips. After she had left the room, Arimon walked and sat down directly opposite the other man.

He leant forward and stared at Keiichi, who fidgeted under his leer. Seeing how nervous he was, Arimon decided it'd be best he didn't waste time.

"So Keiichi…I hear you're planning on asking Bell to marry you."

The younger male looked at him in surprise. "How did you find out?"

The corner of his mouth twitched into a slight smirk. "Word, gets around. You told your sister, she told Kazume who told me not even an hour ago."

Keiichi shook his head. "Wow, talk about spreading like wildfire."

Arimon kept his face neutral. "Keii…you mustn't ask her."

Keiichi stared at him. "What? Why not?"

Arimon continued, his facing remaining blank. "You are well aware she's a goddess, correct?" He nodded. "Then you know that she has duties she cannot ignore forever. Sooner or later, Keiichi…Belldandy will have to return back to heaven for good. It is because of this duty, her role as a First Class Goddess, that she cannot marry you."

Arimon knew he was being harsh by his bluntness, but this was something Keiichi needed to hear. His stomach twisted at the crestfallen expression on the human man's face.

Keiichi averted his gaze to the floor. "So you're saying…that when she does go back…I won't ever see her again?"

For the first time since he sat down, Arimon showed emotion as he sighed. "Of that I'm not sure, I'm certain she will visit on occasion. But living amongst humans permanently is impossible, let alone marrying one."

Arimon could now clearly see the devastation in Keiichi's brown eyes. He really did want to spend the rest of his life with Belldandy, but it seemed fate was too cruel to grant him that one wish. Seeing there was nothing else to be said, Arimon rose to his feet and headed to the door. Before leaving, he paused and turned his head back to look at Keiichi.

"Listen…I know this was hard for you to hear, so I'll say this much. Belldandy still loves you more than anything, so take whatever time you have left to be with her. Tell her every day how much she means to you. Take her out on dates, be affectionate, do everything with her. She knows her time here is limited Keii, and it's breaking her heart at the thought of leaving you…Go to her Keiichi, be with her. You're a good man, no one deserves to be with her more than you do." And then he left, leaving Keiichi alone, his words lingering inside the man's mind.

'He's right.' Keiichi thought. Instead of secretly moping, he should be with the girl he loved and showing her how much she meant to him. With a new resolve, Keiichi stood up and walked out of his room and down the hall to Belldandy's. He knocked on her door, heard a soft, 'come in!' before letting himself in. Belldandy smiled brightly at him as he entered. "Keiichi…"

Said boyfriend walked over and sat down next to her. The moment he was on the floor, she scooted closer to lean her head on his shoulder. He rested his head against hers and wrapped his arm around her waist, sighing contently.

Keiichi smiled into her hair. "Hey Belldandy?"

"Hmm?"

He turned and kissed her head. "I love you."

His girlfriend lifted her head to gaze in surprise at him. It was rare for Keiichi to so blatantly voice his feelings. But when he did, her heart filled with warmth and she would fall even more in love with him.

She leaned in to touch their foreheads together and gazed softly at him. "I love you too Keiichi."

Keiichi closed the gap between them and kissed her tenderly. Belldandy's eyes fluttered close and she angled her head to deepen the kiss. Through a small crack by the door, Arimon watched the two lovebirds with a satisfied smile.

'Good on ya, Keii…you really are perfect for each other.'

As he said this, an image popped into his head. He saw himself, standing on the beach, his hand wrapped around a smaller feminine one. He was with a girl, but was unable to see exactly who she was. He watched as his dream self gazed down lovingly at her, the girl mirroring his expression. He lifted his hand to the side of her face, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear and then caressing her cheek tenderly with his fingers. Arimon suddenly saw everything through his other self's eyes, looking straight into a pair of familiar, sparkling brown orbs, and her fire coloured hair blowing gently in the wind.

**The End**


	4. Best Friends

Chapter Four – Best Friends

The sound of intense laughter sounded from a large apartment building. Inside, two girls were sitting at their kitchen table. The brunette and younger of the two had her face buried in her hands, an icepack placed on her head, while the redhead sitting across from her was howling with laughter, almost falling out of her chair. Megumi glared at her best friends non-stop giggling, it really wasn't all that funny. It was common knowledge that Kazume was the early riser out of the two friends. It was on very rare occasion where Megumi was up first, for example the morning Kazume woke up to her shouting match with Keiichi…that was a nice wake up call.

But this morning was a regular one; Kazume had woken bright and early at the crack of dawn while her roommate slept in for several more hours. But Kazume was startled when Megumi stumbled into the lounge room, her head lolled down and her eyes still closed; she was sleep walking. Kazume watched with interest as her best friend bumped into a few things, mumbling a few incoherent words. But what made her day was when Megumi staggered backwards, bashed her head on the side of the door, stumbling forwards again, tripping on the edge of their rug before falling flat on her face. A now bleary, but awake, Megumi groaned and lifted her head from the floor to see Kazume rolling on the ground in a fit of giggles…and she hadn't stopped laughing since.

She had made sure to grab some ice for her friends now throbbing head, but she was still giggling hysterically. Megumi just glared at her.

"I honestly don't see what the hell is so funny! So I fell over! Big deal!"

This just made things worse. Kazume fell off her chair and collapsed onto the floor, gasping for air. Megumi sighed in defeat. There was a sudden knock on the door, an interruption the brunette was grateful for. Ignoring the convulsing redhead, she opened the door to see Arimon. She reached out and pulled him inside, startling the tall man. She closed the door behind him, grabbed his arm and dragged him into the kitchen and pointed to Kazume.

"Will you _please _calm her down? This is getting ridiculous!"

Arimon followed the direction she was pointing to see the other roommate on the floor shaking, giggling uncontrollably, with tears streaming down her face. He raised an eyebrow.

"How long has she been like this?"

Megumi sighed. "About half an hour. She won't stop."

He looked at her. "What happened?"

So she told him about her little sleepwalking incident earlier that morning. The story had Arimon chuckling slightly, but he was nowhere near the bad state Kazume was in.

He walked over to Kazume and grinned down at her.

"Having fun?

The redhead stopped laughing (but was still sniggering somewhat) and smiled brightly when she saw him. " Hi Arimon!"

He smiled. "Hey there, need help getting up?"

She now realized she was still lying on the ground and grinned sheepishly. "Yes please."

He held out his hand for her, which she took, and pulled her up onto her feet. Kazume wasn't laughing anymore, much to Megumi's relief, but she still wore a mischievous smirk. The brunette rolled her eyes at her friends' immaturity before walking out of the kitchen leaving them alone

Kazume smiled at Arimon. "So this is a surprise, what brings you here?"

He shrugged. "It's boring at the temple, unless you want to watch Keii and Bell acting all lovey dovey all day."

She sniggered. "Yeah I can understand that. I imagine it would become rather nauseating."

He outwardly agreed with her, but in reality the reason Arimon couldn't stay around his cousin was because deep down he secretly wished for what they had. And whenever he thought about settling down, Kazume's face would appear in his mind, making him question his feelings for the perky girl.

But the redhead was none the wiser to the boy's growing affection for her. As far as he could tell, her feelings for him were purely platonic. But that was perfectly fine with him…for now, being her friend was enough.

"Hey Arimon!"

He jumped at her loud tone. "What?"

She grinned. "Let's go out somewhere! Megumi wanted to go see Belldandy for something so…"

He smiled. "Sure, why not? Where did you have in mind?"

She shrugged. "Don't know don't care! I have this heap of spare money and I want to spend it on random stuff."

Arimon chuckled. "Sounds like fun to me."

Kazume clapped her hands. "YAY!"

He laughed. "Well should we get going? How're we getting into town?"

She smiled. "We'll take my bike, but do you think you could drive?"

He stared at her. "Why do you want _me _to drive?"

Kazume smiled innocently. "Well…it would look kinda strange the other way around wouldn't it?"

Arimon pictured in his mind, Kazume riding on her bike, with him sitting awkwardly behind her, wondering where to hang onto without feeling embarrassed. He sweat dropped at the image.

"Yeah…I-I agree… I'll drive."

Kazume giggled at his stuttering, but he doubted she knew what he was really thinking about. She reached into her pocket and handed him the key for the bike. "You go ahead, I'm going to go grab a spare helmet."

He nodded and took the key from her hand. While she wandered off down the house, he made his way outside towards the parking area to her motorcycle. He picked up the helmet, which was hanging on the handles, but when he tried putting it on he found it too small too fit on his head. He heard someone giggling and turned his head to see Kazume grinning wildly at him and holding a larger helmet up with her fingers.

"The spare helmet is for you, silly. My one was made especially for me because I'm smaller than most motorbike riders."

Arimon grinned sheepishly. "Right…I knew that."

She chuckled. "Sure ya did. Now come on, let's get going."

He took the helmet from her and placed it on, Kazume doing the same with hers. He swung his leg over the seat and mounted. He felt a small weight as his companion jumped on behind him. He gulped slightly when she slid her arms around his waist and linked her fingers together before resting them on his stomach. Doing his best to ignore the butterflies in his stomach, he switched the ignition on and drove out of the driveway and down the road, the object of his affection holding him tightly.

Although in reality the ride hadn't been more than around twenty minutes, for Arimon it felt like several hours. He had eventually adjusted to the close proximity of the girl behind him, but his brain came to a complete halt when she pressed herself flat against him and rested her head on his back. He was happy to know she was this comfortable with him, but if only she knew the kind of effect she was having on him.

At last they pulled next to the curb outside a line of several shops. Kazume immediately leapt off the bike in excitement, gazing in wonder over where to go first. Arimon barely had time to hop off the bike himself when he felt himself being roughly dragged in a random direction.

'This was going to be a long day."

Several gruelling hours later, the pair finally walked back to the bike. Kazume had several bags hanging off her arms, still walking lightly like she had all the energy in the world. Behind her, her redhead male companion was practically dragging his feet. 'How in the hell can she still be so energetic? I may be a God but I'm not indestructible, seriously what is the deal with girls and shopping?'

He sighed heavily. "Can we go home now?"

The hyper girl raised an eyebrow. "What's with that tone? I thought you were having fun."

He groaned. "Sure…but we've been walking non-stop for most of the day, I can only take so much of it."

She giggled. "Oh alright then, why don't we grab something to eat and then we'll head back."

"Yes! Thank you!"

Kazume grabbed his wrist and once again began pulling, this time back to the motorbike. Again Arimon put on the helmet and mounted the front while his companion took a moment to strap her new belongings on the back before joining him as well.

A sense of de ja vu washed over Arimon as he rode them back home sometime later. Kazume's arms were again locked around his middle, with her head resting gently against him. He wondered why she was leaning on him more closely than usual, but he heard an intake of a deep breath and realized she must've fallen asleep. He smiled bemusedly at her; guess their shopping trip wore her out more than she thought. He felt her shiver slightly from the cold wind. Slowing the bike down to a stop, he shook off his jacket and wrapped it snugly around her shoulders. Kazume relaxed into the welcoming warmth, falling forward and landing on Arimon's chest. He started for a moment but smiled and wrapped his arms protectively around her.

He looked hopelessly at the long road. "This is useless, I can't drive like this. Guess it's a good thing I'm a god with powers."

Careful not to wake the sleeping girl in his arms, he slowly got off the bike. Lifting his hand he sent the vehicle a quiet command, a soft white glow emanating from his palm. _'Go back to your resting place, your mistress is safe with me."_

As if the bike had heard him, it purred to life and took off by itself down the road. He watched, as it gradually became a small dot in the distance. Looking down, he smiled at the girl he was holding. She was fast asleep, completely unaware of what was happening and that the man holding her had just performed magic on her motorcycle. Double-checking to make sure she was fully unconscious, he lifted them off the ground and took flight, never letting go of the redhead in his arms.

Coincidentally, Arimon managed to make it back to Kazume's apartment just as her bike was parking itself. Nevertheless, he was grateful for the precise timing, it would save any questioning from a certain brunette. As you would have it, that same roommate burst through the front door, having heard the bike's engine. She stopped short when she saw her best friend fast asleep, Arimon's long coat draped over her body, his arms wrapped protectively around her small frame.

Megumi smiled at him. "You guys seem to have had fun, you've gone and worn her out."

He stared incredulously at her. "Me? She was the one dragging me to all sorts of weird girly places! That girl is too…eccentric for her own good. Where does she get all that energy?"

She just laughed. "Kazume always tends to over-exert herself." Megumi's face then turned serious. "I imagine her past has a part to play in it. She didn't have many friends, let alone childhood or teenage years to enjoy. So I don't blame her for being enthusiastic over something as small as shopping."

Arimon looked down at the sleeping girl. He had completely forgotten how rough her life had been growing up. In the short time he had known her, he had only come to know her as nothing but the fun, loving and compassionate girl he now knew he deeply cared for.

He raised his head to look at the other girl. "Can I leave her with you then? I think she's had enough for one day."

She smiled. "Why don't you take her to her room? I'll take over from there."

He nodded and walked past her inside the house. Megumi stared at his retreating figure. There was something about the way he has been looking at her best friend. There was such tenderness in his eyes, the way he carried her as if she was the most precious person to him in the world. Her own eye widened at a sudden revelation… was Arimon in love with Kazume?

The same man was at that moment lowering the redhead onto her futon. He gently lay her down then covered her with her blankets, being sure that she was comfortable. He smiled when she pulled them closer to herself and curled into a tight ball. Deciding to leave her be, he quietly left her room.

Kazume woke a couple of hours later. She sat up in her bed, blinking in confusion at her surroundings. How and when did she end up in her room? The last thing she remembered was sitting on the back of her own motorbike, staring contently at the street lights as they passed by her in a blur of colours, her arms wrapped tightly around the man sitting in front of her. This was the last image her eyes had seen before she drifted off into a peaceful sleep. She reached up and sleepily rubbed her eyes. Her hand paused as a possibility came to mind; did Arimon put her here? He was the last person she remembered being with, so he must've played some part. She promised herself she would ask him later.

The door slid open then and her best friend walked in, smiling when she saw Kazume was awake.

"Hey there, have a good sleep?"

Kazume stretched her arms. "Yeah I guess… what time is it?"

Megumi grinned. "It's nearly six, you've only been out for a couple of hours."

Kazume slumped back down. "Wow…I was really konked out wasn't I?"

Her friend grinned. "Arimon did tell me you went a tad bit overboard today. You really need to watch yourself girl"

She chuckled sheepishly. "Haha, sorry about that, I must've been on something. I just had heaps of energy."

Megumi shook her head. "Poor guy was probably more exhausted than you were."

Kazume then remembered her previous thoughts; she turned to her best friend. "Megumi…how did I end up in my room? The last thing I remember is falling asleep while Arimon drove us home."

Her friend smiled. "Which is what he did, he brought you home. He carried you inside and tucked you in bed, not to mention he had you all nicely wrapped up in that coat of his." She left out the part with Arimon's love struck expression; she didn't think Kazume was ready to hear that yet.

Kazume's eyes widened. "A…Arimon…did all that?

Megumi nodded. "Yeah…he really cares about you, ya know? You've gotten yourself quite the amazing friend there."

The redhead nodded, distracted by her friends words. She had noticed that Arimon has been treating her especially nice lately, especially with his hugs. Whenever she was angry or upset about something, he wouldn't hesitate to pull her close and hold her, not letting go until she had calmed down. He would lean down and whisper comforting words to her, telling her that he was there, and always would be. A warm fluttering sensation rose in her chest, but vanished so quickly Kazume wasn't sure what she had just felt. She mentally shook her head, paying no more attention to it.

Speaking of Arimon, she needed to talk to him. She turned once again to her best friend who was staring quizzically at her. She stared back.

"What?"

Megumi raised an eyebrow. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine…why?"

"You seemed really lost in thought for a minute there."

Kazume grinned. "Sorry, guess I fazed out. Hey how was your visit with Belldandy?"

The brunette sighed. "Not so good. I was hoping to find out more on why marrying Keiichi was such a bad idea, but she was really stubborn, which is unusual for her. Belldandy is usually so open about her feelings, it's strange to see her so clamped up."

Kazume reached over and grasped her best friends hand. "Don't worry so much ok? It'll all work itself out. It has to… those two belong together. It's weird but they just…fit. Ya know what I mean?"

Megumi nodded in agreement. "That's exactly what I mean! They're perfect for each other! So it's breaking my heart that's there's something I don't know about, something that will eventually rip them apart!"

Kazume sighed. "I know, listen I'll talk to Arimon again. He definitely knows something, he even said so himself when I spoke to him a while back. I feel considerably close with him now, so maybe I can convince him to tell me what's going on."

Her friend smiled. "Thanks Kazume, what would I do without you?"

The redhead laughed. "Probably best I don't answer that. Well I'll go call him, and see if I can meet up with him. I'll probably be back later tonight."

Megumi nodded. "Alright, I'll see you later then."

Kazume was positive she could somehow get Arimon to spill the beans. But when she had met up with him again and practically begged for him to say something, he was very set on keeping his mouth shut.

"I'm sorry Kazume, but I can't say anything."

She growled in frustration. "Why not? What is so big that I, a close friend of Belldandy's, and Megumi, Keiichi's sister, are not allowed to know?"

He frowned slightly; keeping this from her was killing him. "It isn't my decision to make…I'm sworn to secrecy."

She sighed. "I just…I feel like that whatever this is, it's the one thing that's holding the gap between our friendship. You keeping something this big from me, I feel like there's something about, not just Belldandy, but you as well that you're not telling me. The fact that you're hiding something makes me feel as if you don't fully trust me, even after I've told you everything about my life."

Her words hit Arimon like a punch to the gut. She was right. She had opened her heart and confessed everything about herself to him. And here he was, hiding the one truth about himself he was most terrified to tell her. It wasn't because he didn't trust her, but because he was scared…scared that she would see nothing but the demon inside him…scared that he would frighten her. But wasn't that what trusting her was all about? Having faith that she would accept him for who he was, and not be afraid of the two half's inside of himself that were constantly fighting for dominance

He stared at her, her brown eyes pleading him to let her in. And that was when he caved in. He couldn't lie to her any longer. She had found a way to reach in and touch a place in his heart that no one had ever before seen even a glimpse of. With his constant growing feelings for her, and her kindness towards him, he saw no reason why she didn't deserve to know the truth.

So with a final sigh, he nodded. "Alright, I'll tell you everything. But you need to brace yourself, it may be hard to believe."

Kazume, who was surprised but pleased at his sudden allowance to open up to her, tilted her head curiously. "Why wouldn't I believe you?"

'Here goes.' He thought with a deep breath. "Because, Belldandy, Urd, Skuld and myself…we are not from this world."

It took a few moments for Kazume to register his words. When her brain clicked, she looked more confused than ever. "What do you mean, not from this world? Are you aliens or something?"

He chuckled. "Not quite…we're gods and goddesses."

Kazume's jaw dropped. "Say what?"

He quickly put up his hand. "Now before you say anything, allow me to show you some proof. Here, you might want to take a few steps back."

After making sure she was a safe distance from him, he closed his eyes and concentrated. He called to the demons with his mind, feeling that familiar surge of power as it poured through his body. Magic surrounded him, the bright red glow of his aura swirling from his head to his feet. Suddenly, two magnificent red-feathered wings sprung from his back, spreading out and reaching far above them.

Kazume could only gawk open-mouthed as the man before her transformed into, what she could only describe as, a very powerful being. The power around him was incredible; she could feel the force of his magic pushing into her very soul. She knew he must be extremely powerful. But her breath was suddenly taken away when his wings appeared. She was hypnotised at what a beautiful shade of red they were, they gave a big contrast compared to the soft green of the grass and trees around them. But as all this happened, Arimon's eyes remained closed and his face completely focused. Gradually, everything started to fade away. The waves of deep red surges seemed to be consumed by his hands as they eventually vanished. His massive wings folded inwards, fading along with everything else. And then she was looking once again at Arimon, standing there as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. He had opened his eyes and was now staring at her, waiting for her to say something.

Kazume was at a loss for words. Seeing that overwhelming display was all the proof she needed, only beings like gods and goddesses possessed power like that. But it wasn't the magic that had shocked her; it was the fact that she now realized what exactly Arimon was. He was a God…and a very powerful one too. Oh hell, what had she gotten into?

Arimon was starting to become worried. Did she believe him? She seemed to be in shock but beyond that he couldn't figure out what she was thinking.

He took a tentative step towards her. "Kazume…are you alright?"

His voice snapped her out of her thoughts and she looked at him. "…Wow…" Was all she said, her brain still incapable of forming any words to describe what she just saw.

He reached a hand out to her. "You…do believe me, right?"

She managed a small smile. "It's hard not to after seeing that. So…you're a god?"

Arimon sighed. "Well, actually I'm half god, half demon." He closed his eyes, fully expecting her to be disgusted. That's how anyone else would've reacted.

"Oh a demon too? That's pretty cool."

His eyes snapped back open in surprise. "What?"

She smiled at him. "What were you expecting? For me to run away scared or something?"

He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "So…you don't mind that part of me is demonic?"

She shook her head. "I wouldn't have cared if you were a full demon. You're still my friend Arimon, and I care about you. That's all that matters to me. Besides, for someone who has demon blood inside him, you turned out to be quite a nice guy."

Unable to hold himself back any longer, Arimon reached forward and crushed her into a hug. "Thank you."

Startled by his sudden show of affection, she placed her arms around him comfortingly. "For what?"

He buried his head into her shoulder. "For accepting me, you're the first person to ever say those words to me." He stepped back to look at her. "You see I was born in the Demon Realm, my mother being a demon herself. But I never knew my parents, or even found out what happened to them. My Aunt Hild, my mothers' sister raised me; who also happens to be the ruler of all Demon Kind. She brought me up in the strictest ways you can think of. She showed me the ropes on how to be a full-fledged demon, teaching me how to create misery amongst the humans. For years I watched the people here on earth, learning of their ways of living. But to me, they weren't anything important. With no friends, and a pushy demon queen as my only family, I only came to care about myself. But it was after I met you I realized what a fool I was. Half of me may be demonic, but I am also half god. That side of myself saw the wrong I was doing, and helped me realized how much I had hurt you that day. After an entire lifetime of hating myself, and everyone around me, my godlike side finally came forward to give me the best thing I could've asked for; friendship."

Kazume listened intently to his story, realizing just how similar their lives were. They had both been completely alone growing up, with no one else to turn to. 'But', she thought, 'he's had it worse than me. I came here and found an immediate friend in Megumi, and before that I at least had my racing to take my mind off things. He never had that chance; he's been trapped in such a dark place for so long. It's no wonder he was as bitter as he was when I first met him.'

Feeling nothing but compassion for him, she pulled him back down again to wrap him in a tight hug. "I'm so sorry, if only I knew back then."

He returned her hug. He knew exactly what she meant. "You shouldn't be the one apologizing. It was my fault; I treated you horribly and unfairly. My pride as a demon overtook me, and it only ended with me hurting you in the long run. "He tightened his hold on her. "I'm so sorry."

They remained tightly locked in their embrace, all their feelings rushing to the surface after months of suppressing them. Overwhelmed with emotion, tears fell down Kazume's cheeks. She felt so much closer to him now. He knew all her secrets and now she knew his. She didn't see him as just her friend anymore, he was now so much more than that. Arimon could feel her soft tears as they soaked his shirt. He felt an emotional lump in his throat as she cried into his shoulder. Now at a loss of words, he just tightened his hold on her, tears gathering in his own eyes.

After several minutes they finally calmed themselves down. Kazume pulled out of the hug first, looked up at him with teary eyes and giggled. Her laughter was contagious and he joined in, both feeling a heavy burden lift off their shoulders. She then stared at him curiously. "I have one more question for you." When he raised an eyebrow she reached up and pressed a thumb to the mark on his forehead. "What's up with these weird things? Is it supposed to symbolise something?"

Arimon laughed. "Those represent our status as gods and demons. Generally the gods have blue marks, while the demons have red ones."

Kazume gazed at his markings curiously. "But yours are white. What does that mean?"

He shrugged. "I guess it's because I'm both."

She let out a small 'ahh' and left it at that. Well that's one more mystery solved and yet Kazume wasn't anywhere near done talking with him, but this new discovery helped her realize a startling truth. She looked at him with wide eyes. "That's it!"

He stared back at her. "What?"

She grinned widely. "That's why Belldandy says she can't marry Keiichi! Because she's a goddess! Which means at some point she'll have to leave and return to heaven…I'm assuming that's where all the gods live right?"

He smiled proudly at her, impressed by how fast she catches on. "Yes that's precisely why. Belldandy is a First Class Goddess, one of most highest and respected callings one could have in heaven. Part of her duty is to fulfil wishes, which is how her and Keiichi met in the first place."

Kazume looked at him questioningly. "How exactly did they meet with wish fulfilling?"

Arimon chuckled. "There's a special phone line that can connect you to both heaven and hell. Keiichi had accidentally dialled through to the Goddess Help Line. And of course it was Belldandy who answered the phone. And since Keiichi had then officially become her client, she had come down to earth to grant him a wish. Hah, then again it's because of that wish that she's still here."

Kazume's eyes sparkled with interest. "Oh! What wish did he make?"

He grinned at her excitement. "Basically, he asked her to stay by his side forever."

Kazume's jaw dropped. "Whoa…that's full on…I bet that was the last thing Belldandy expected."

Arimon nodded. "She did tell me that the wish surprised her. But when she called heaven, they told her that it was valid. So, she stayed on Earth with Keiichi. And as you can see, they fell in love with each other along the way, which unfortunately made everything that much more complicated for them, now that Keiichi wants to propose."

Kazume sighed. "Wow…I can see why you were hesitant to tell me, that's a lot to take in."

He nodded. "Yeah…Bell's probably gonna chew me out for telling you.

She sniggered. "Good luck with that. But knowing Belldandy, I think she'll understand. You had your own personal reasons for telling me."

He smiled gratefully. "Thanks, that actually made me feel better."

She smiled back. "Anything for a friend."

The two continued to talk for several more hours. It wasn't until Kazume let out a massive yawn did they realize it was getting late.

Arimon placed a hand on her shoulder. "Come on, I'll walk you home."

She pouted. "Why can't we just fly? You can fly can't you?"

He sighed. "Well…yeah I can but it's not that far to your apartment."

She groaned. "But I'm tiirreeedd! I can barely see straight."

Arimon noticed that she was indeed walking in zigzags as she stumbled across the park. He chuckled and walked over to stop her with a hand on her shoulder. "Whoa, easy there you might run into a tree." Ignoring her glare, he stood in front of her and crouched down.

"Here, jump on my back. I'll give you a piggy ride home."

She stared at him for a moment then shrugged and jumped on, locking her arms around his neck. "Fine, whatever, as long as I don't have to walk."

Once he was sure she was secure, he stood up again and began walking in the direction of her house. He couldn't help the chuckle that escaped his throat. "You know Kazume, this is the second time I've had to carry you home."

He was met with a silent reply. He glanced to the side to see she had fallen asleep on him again. Her tight hold had loosened and her head was resting comfortable on his shoulder. He smiled at her peaceful expression. 'Boy, does she fall asleep easily.'

Arimon continued to glance at her every now and then as he walked, occasionally sending the sleeping girl a tender smile. He really didn't mind carrying her, she was light as a feather and this just gave him an excuse to be close to her.

Since this time they had arrived home much later, Arimon didn't want to disturb the other roommate. So using a quick spell to unlock the door, he let himself in and walked down the all too familiar path to Kazume's room. Just as he opened her door, he felt her starting to stir awake. He smiled at her as her eyes fluttered open.

"Hey there sleepy head. Just in time."

A barely alive Kazume blinked at her surroundings. "Arewe…inmyroom…alrdy?"

He grinned at her incoherent sentence. "Yes, this is your room. Come on let's get you into bed."

He helped her as she slid off his back before helping her under her covers for the second time that day. She snuggled under the covers then looked back at him with a tired smile. "Thanks for carrying me home."

He smiled back. "You're welcome, I'll gladly do it again."

Her eyes drooped close as she muttered, "G'night" before falling asleep once again.

He gazed softly at her. "Good night, Kazume."

And for the first time, he bent down and gently kissed her forehead.

**End Of Chapter**


	5. Memories

Chapter Five – Memories

"Hey Kazume can I talk to you for a sec?"

Kazume looked up from her breakfast at her best friend, who was wearing a sceptical expression.

"Uh…sure Megumi, what's up?"

Megumi leaned her elbows on the table and linked her fingers together. "Do you have romantic feelings for Arimon?"

The redhead choked on her cereal. "WHAT?"

Her friend shrugged. "Well, you're a girl, he's a guy and you guys are becoming really close lately. I mean you do everything together!"

Kazume stared. "Well yeah…because we're friends."

Megumi face-palmed. "You really don't see it do you? Just how inseparable you two are. I feel like I'm being replaced as a best friend."

Kazume shook her hands in denial. "Of course not! I'm not replacing you at all!" She sighed. "But it's true, I have been spending quite a lot of time around him lately haven't I?"

Her friend nodded. "Exactly, which is why I'm asking if you like him. You seem happiest and more like yourself when you're around him anyway."

Kazume frowned and averted her gaze downwards. "I do care about Arimon, in more ways than one. But I don't think I'm ready to go down that road yet. I've never been in a relationship before, and I'm not sure I want my first experience to be with Arimon…he seems great as a friend for now."

Eve as she spoke, Megumi could detect a hinge of doubt behind Kazume's words. She could understand how she would be hesitant to become close to a man on an intimate level. Her own father had abandoned her. The only man she'd really known her whole life was a creepy old man that kept orphan girls all to himself. 'Creepy old paedophile.' And then when she had met Arimon, he had left a terrible first impression on her, respect for men lowering even further inside Kazume's mind. So even though the two had become close friends, Megumi could sense the fear that her friend felt at the possibility of romance.

"Megumi? Are you ok?"

Megumi's mind snapped back to reality. "Huh? Oh yeah…fine, just fazed out for a minute."

Kazume giggled. "Are you sure you're not the one with a boy on your mind?"

Megumi gawked at her. "What the hell makes you think that? I don't have anyone on my mind! Where did that even COME from?"

Kazume giggled even harder. "Aw come on Megumi! You know I'm just having a go at ya!"

Megumi mock-glared at her. "You can be so cruel, there's nothing innocent about you… its all just one big façade."

Kazume smiled innocently. "Guess you just know me too well."

The fun, relaxed mood was interrupted by Kazume's phone. The redhead reached over and picked it up. She looked at the callers' name 'Arimon' Quickly pressing answer; she pulled it up to her ear.

"Hi Arimon!"

…

"WHAT?"

…

"Ok! We're on our way now!"

She hung up and looked with desperation at Megumi. "We need to head over to the hospital right now!"

Megumi looked at her friend worried. "Why? What's going on?"

"It's Keiichi! He's been in an accident!"

Megumi stared in shock for a moment before jumping to her feet. "Well let's go then!"

The two girls wasted no time as they raced out the door and towards Kazume's bike. They jumped on the bike and Kazume turned on the engine and took off towards their destination.

Arimon sat patiently on a chair in an empty waiting room. His face seemed blank as he stared at the ground, but his eyes swirled with concern and fear. Belldandy was leaning on him, her face buried in his chest as she quietly sobbed. With an arm wrapped around her, he squeezed her shoulder gently in silent comfort. He could think of no words to console his distraught cousin. The love of her life was currently fighting for his life, a fatal accident caused by some sort of cruel twist of fate.

Keiichi had been riding home after another typical day at the university. He had called his girlfriend, telling her he was on his way home. Belldandy had happily told him she was looking forward to seeing him, and that she would have supper waiting for him. But Keiichi never made it home. He had obediently waited for the red light to change at an intersection. He took off the moment it turned green, but as he crossed the middle, he didn't see the out of control truck hurtling towards him.

Arimon clenched his fist. The truck driver, who had been completely drunk, was completely unscathed by the accident. While Keiichi, a completely innocent victim, was lying somewhere in the emergency room, his life hanging by a thread.

"Arimon!"

He whipped his head to the side to see Kazume and Megumi running through the entrance. The former ran and sat directly next to him, reaching over and gripping his sleeve in fear. This gesture did not go unnoticed by her best friend.

Kazume leaned forward. "How is he? Is Keiichi ok?"

Arimon frowned. "We don't know… there's been no word yet."

She let go of his arm and faced herself forward, her body slouching. "This isn't fair. Just when life was making a good turn around too."

Kazume suddenly remembered her best friend, and looked up to see her staring emotionless at the large Emergency Doors. How could she have forgotten? This was Megumi's brother! Goodness knows how she could be feeling.

"M…Megumi?"

The brunette didn't respond, just kept her blank gaze ahead of her as if expecting her brother to walk out any second. Kazume stared worriedly at her, sensing her friends denial. Keiichi was her only sibling and Kazume was well aware of how lonely life can be being an only child.

A hand on Kazume's shoulder forced her to look away from her best friend and into compassionate amethyst eyes.

Arimon smiled comfortingly at her. "Leave her be, for now all we can do is wait."

Kazume sighed sadly and leaned her head on his shoulder. He reached over to gently grip her hand, leaning his head on hers.

Megumi couldn't move, let alone register anything around her. All she could think about was her brother, the one constant family in her life that had always been there for her. And now he was lying on a table somewhere, possibly dying for all she knew. She vaguely heard Kazume calling her name, but couldn't bring herself to answer or even look at her or any of the others. But at the corner of her eye, she could see her best friend leaning her head contently on Arimon's shoulder who in turn had rested his on hers, their hands loosely clasped together. Even with the situation at hand, Megumi began betting inside her mind, wondering when those two would admit they liked each other.

Suddenly the large double doors opened and a doctor emerged. He looked around the waiting room before announcing loudly. "Who is here for Keiichi Morisato?"

Megumi's eyes widened and she dashed forward, Belldandy following closely behind. Arimon and Kazume stood up, but had stayed back to let the two most important people in Keiichi's life go. Kazume watched nervously as the doctor motioned to something on his chart, shaking his head but then nodding. This confused her until Belldandy started bawling and Megumi's shoulders slumped in what seemed to be relief. For the first time since they arrived, Megumi turned and looked at her best friend, giving her a shaky smile and a thumbs-up.

Kazume let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. "Phew, seems like he'll be alright."

Arimon, who was standing next to her, smiled. "He really is a lucky guy isn't he?"

She nodded, whilst watching Megumi comfort the crying goddess. "He really is."

Megumi turned around and beckoned to them, indicating they could go in to see Keiichi. The small group made their way down the hall until they reached a certain door on the left. When they walked in, they found Keiichi lying unconscious on the bed with a mask over his face to help him breath. But other than that, he seemed to be sleeping peacefully.

Belldandy let out a cry seeing her boyfriend in such a fragile state. She walked over, sat by his bed and held his hand. Tears flowed down her face as she whispered Keiichi's name, over and over. Megumi sat on the other side holding his other hand, but was much more calmer than the girl opposite her. Kazume could feel her heart breaking, Keiichi looked so weak and helpless. She was so used to seeing him in such high spirits while riding his motorcycle and showing his affection to Belldandy. Tearing her eyes away from the scene, Kazume turned on her heel and fled from the room.

Arimon was startled when the redhead next to him suddenly took off. Feeling concerned, he followed her, leaving the other two girls alone with Keiichi. They needed a moment with him anyway. He strode down the corridor, looking left and right for Kazume. He stopped in his tracks when he spotted a lone figure sitting in a dark corner of an abandoned patient room. Kazume was sitting in an all too familiar position, hugging her knees tightly to herself with her face buried in them. As he slowly approached her, he could hear the faint sound of her soft crying. He bent down and placed a gentle hand on her knee. The girl jumped a little, startled by the sudden contact but upon looking up, calmed down when seeing it was only Arimon.

He felt his chest sting seeing her cry. "Kazume…he's ok. He's over the worst."

She shook her head. "It's not that. I just…this reminded me of my father. One time when I was little, he had a sudden heart attack. I was only three at the time, so naturally I was scared for him. I was terrified I was going to lose the only family I had, so I stuck by him for days. I never left his bedside. I was in no better state than Belldandy is in right now. But…" She clenched her fists tightly. "…How does he repay me? By taking everything and leaving me to die in the middle of a street, not to mention in the frigging pouring rain." She looked into Arimon's eyes, fear swirling in her own. "I know I'm being selfish, but I can't stand watching it all again. Keiichi was nearly killed; I don't think my heart could've taken it if he had died. And if it's this bad for me, just imagine how devastated Belldandy and Megumi would be…Damn I hate hospitals."

Arimon didn't comment. Instead he grabbed her hand and gently pulled her towards him into a comforting hug. Kazume was startled but quickly sunk into his arms and openly cried into his shoulder. He understood now, she was letting everything out. Her father, a lifetime of loneliness, and as much as it pained him to admit, he was partially to blame too. The horrible way he had treated her when they had first met was something he could never forgive himself for. All he had done was add onto the pile of wounds that had built inside her all her life. He was glad she knew that he cared about her, but he wouldn't be surprised if there was a part deep down inside her that hated him. He sure wouldn't blame her if that were the case.

But all he was able to do now is hold her and be the friend he promised he would be. Even if it meant…ignoring his newly found feelings for her.

It was another full week before Keiichi was discharged from the hospital, even then he was still rather weak and would be weary more quickly than usual. Belldandy did her part as the faithful girlfriend and barely left Keiichi's side, along with feeding and nursing him back to health. Megumi was the dedicated sister and visited him regularly, making sure her brother was never bored. Urd and Skuld were his entertainment, or rather he was theirs. With no energy to move, the sisters took this as a good reason to practise more tests and inventions on him. But eventually it became too much and Belldandy forbid them to go near him. Arimon helped as well by escorting Keiichi to and back from school, and occasionally the Auto Club. At times he would drive him there on Keiichi's bike, but the times they were in a rush Arimon would fling him over his shoulder and fly him there.

Kazume on the other hand, lent her help by filling in for Keiichi at the Auto Club. She wasn't much of a maintenance keeper but she more than made up for it with races, winning many competitions for their team.

After several weeks, Kazume was starting to get anxious. She understood that Keiichi was still recovering, but all this back and forth with their club was beginning to take its toll on her endurance. So after another long gruelling day of racing in what felt like every single type of vehicle in existence, she trudged through her apartment door.

"Megumi! I'm home! And I'm sttaarrrvviinnggg!"

She turned into the kitchen and stopped dead in her tracks. Instead of her best friend, there stood Arimon, who was standing at the stove with a sizzling frypan.

Kazume could've sworn her jaw was dragging on the ground. "Arimon?"

Her male friend grinned. "Hey there, welcome home."

She stared incredulously at him. "Welcome home? What the hell? What are you even doing here? Where's Megumi?"

He chuckled. "Whoa, calm down one question at a time. Megumi is staying over at Keii's place today, so she asked me to come here and make some food for you for when you got home."

She sighed. "Well I guess it can't be helped then." Her attention then turned to the stove. "Wow that smells really good, what are you making?"

He shrugged. "Nothing major; some sausages, potato and veggies."

Kazume could feel her mouth starting to water. "Damn…anything sounds good right about now."

Arimon laughed. "Well take a seat, I'll have this served up for you in just a minute."

She smiled and made herself comfortable at the table. While she waited, she found herself staring at Arimon's back while he cooked. An unfamiliar feeling rose in her chest, similar to the one she felt several weeks back when Megumi had told her he had carried her home. 'What is this feeling? Why can't I figure out what it is?'

"Ok it's ready!"

She jolted in her seat when he turned around with her freshly cooked meal on a plate. He placed the food in front of her before sitting in the chair opposite her. She grinned happily and clapped her hands together. "Thank you for the food!"

After a few big bites, she looked at him. "Hey, aren't you going to eat something?"

He put up his hand in protest. "No thanks. I'm not a big eater."

She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Come to think of it, I've never really seen you eat anything. Is food not a necessity because of your immortality or something?"

He shrugged. "Something like that, we never really get hungry. But we can still eat if we want to."

Kazume gazed at him in wonder. "Interesting." She said before she took another large mouthful. "Mmmm this is really good!"

Arimon smirked in amusement. "You say that when you're already half way through your meal?"

Kazume glared at him. "I chose now to comment because I was too busy eating it! Excuse me for enjoying a meal that YOU made for me!"

Her glare hardened when he just laughed at her rant. "It's NOT FUNNY!"

He put his hands up in surrender, calming himself down. "Alright, alright I'm sorry."

Kazume sighed. "No…I'm sorry."

Arimon looked at her, surprised by her quick change of mood. He gazed at her concernedly. "Are you ok…Kazume?"

His eyebrow rose when she looked at him with pleading big eyes. "Are you any good at giving massages?"

He gawked. "What? Massage? What for?"

Kazume lifted her arm and rolled her shoulder, her joints grinding. "All this racing has worn me out, I can feel knots all in my neck and shoulders. Can you help get them out for me?"

Arimon gulped. "Um…sure I'll do what I can. Here let's go to the living room where it's more comfortable."

They stood and made their way into the other room. Arimon sat down and leaned his back against the wall. He placed a pillow in between his legs to give her a comfortable place to sit.

He smiled and patted the cushion. "Come sit and face with your back towards me."

She obliged, plonking herself on her butt in front of him. He was about to lift his hands but stopped when she reached back and pulled her hair over her shoulder, exposing her slender neck.

Arimon swallowed slightly before placing his hands gently in the crooks of her throat and rubbing up and down her neck with his thumbs. He worked on her neck for a minute before moving down to her shoulders. He gently kneaded his fingers into her shoulders, squeezing them gently going from there and down her arms. After massaging that area for several minutes, he then moved to her upper back. He placed his fingers around her shoulder blades and pressed in, repeating this several times around that area. He was starting to feel more comfortable with what he was doing, until Kazume decided to make matters worse. Once he started focusing on her middle to lower back, she had moaned in pleasure before leaning back against him with her head on his shoulder. His stomach was practically on fire by now. He could feel her breath on his neck, which sent shivers down his spine. But he kept his focus and continued to work out the knots in her back. When his fingers pressed into a certain sensitive point, she had gasped and reached up to grab the back of his neck. Arimon wasn't sure how much more he could take. Luckily for him, she pulled away before the last of his resolve could crumble.

She turned around and smiled brightly at him, oblivious to her friends' embarrassment. "Thank you so much! I feel heaps better!"

He smiled back. "Not a problem, I was glad to help." Holy crap he needed to get out. He stood up and brushed his jeans down. "Well I'll head on back, unless there's something else you need?"

Kazume stretched. "No it's ok. I might turn in early, today has just wiped me out." She giggled. "Besides, that massage of yours has left me all floppy and sleepy."

Arimon grinned. "Glad to be of service."

Kazume followed him to the door and stood at the entrance while he turned to face her. She smiled at him. "Thanks again for your company."

He smiled back. "Not a problem, give me a call if you need anything else."

She nodded, then shyly; she walked up to him before leaning up and placing a soft kiss on his cheek. Arimon froze when he felt her velvety lips on his skin. He closed his eyes, imagining what it would feel like to have her lips against his own. But the moment ended all too soon when she pulled back, leaving a tingling sensation where her lips were seconds earlier. She gave him a small smile before walking back inside the house.

Arimon lifted a hand and touched the place on his cheek where she had kissed him. Her lips were extremely soft and gentle like a brush from a butterfly wing. He sighed as he walked down the dark road. He couldn't lie to himself anymore, no matter how many times he tried to convince himself otherwise. There was no use denying the truth any further.

He was in love with Kazume Miyazaki.

He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. How did this happen? He had sworn to his Aunty that he wouldn't fall for a human girl, and now he had gone and done just that. But he didn't regret anything. In the number of months he had known her, Kazume had shown him more kindness than his whole family had his entire life. How could he not fall in love with her? And she had this astonishing effect on him. He was a mighty god, born with no weakness and was able to stand up to anyone. But he only needed to stand within metres of Kazume and he could feel himself become weak in the knees. And let's not even begin to go into what her smile does to him, and how the brightness of it seems to rival the sun itself. He sighed, if being in love with Kazume meant giving up his immortality…then so be it.

Hild growled in rage as she watched her now smitten nephew. She had given him one simple rule and he couldn't even obey that. Arimon had always been rebellious, even in his childhood. But up until now, he had never shown any interest in the human race, except for rare occasion where he would complain how useless they were, all the while wearing a devious smirk. And now look at him, just a short time with this human girl and she's turned him into a bumbling lovesick fool. Stupid, meddling girl, she would regret taking away her most precious demon.

The Ruler of Demon kind smiled as she watched the redhead girl, happily falling asleep in her bed.

"That's right, enjoy him while you can little one. Your days with Arimon are numbered. I will make sure that both of you suffer the consequences."

'Riinngg!' 'Riinngg!'

Kazume groaned as she turned over. Who in the hell is calling at this hour? She picked up her clock and squinted at the time. Six thirty. She sighed, oh well this was about the time she woke up anyway. She reached over and picked up her phone.

"H'lo?"

"_Oh! Kazume! I'm so sorry, did I wake you?"_

She scrunched up her nose in confusion, "Belldandy…" Why was she calling? "No…it's fine I was getting up anyway. Is everything ok?"

"_Oh yes everything is fine! I just need to talk to you about something, if that is ok?"_

She smiled. "Sure Bell, that's fine. When did you want to meet?"

"_Um…actually, I'm outside your apartment right now."_

Kazume's eyes widened. "What? Oh…I'm coming!"

She threw off her covers and bolted for the front door, still in her pyjamas. She wrenched open the front door to meet a very patiently waiting Belldandy. She grinned sheepishly at her before stepping aside to let her in, to which the goddess smiled politely and then stepping into the house.

Kazume looked at her as she closed the door. "So, what brings you here? Are you alright?"

Belldandy's smiled faltered somewhat. "I need to talk about Keiichi."

Kazume raised an eyebrow. "What about him? How's his recovery going by the way?"

The goddess smiled sadly. "He is doing great, he's practically back to one hundred percent. But that's not what I came here for." She looked intensely at Kazume. "I found…an engagement ring in his drawer."

Kazume's eyes bulged. A ring? But she thought Keiichi wasn't going to go through with the proposal.

"I gather from your stunned silence, you knew about this."

Kazume looked up at the now stern gaze of Belldandy. She sighed. "I did know he wanted to propose, but I had no idea he had bought a ring."

Belldandy frowned. "But you knew he wanted to ask me."

Kazume nodded. "Yeah...and I know why you can't say yes either."

The goddess sighed. "Yes, I heard Arimon had told you everything about us."

Kazume gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't you worry Bell, your secret is safe with me. I won't breathe a word to anyone, not even Megumi. It's not really my business to tell anyway."

Belldandy smiled. "I'm thankful to you Kazume, you're a good, honest person."

Kazume looked at her closely. "What's wrong Bell? That's not all is it?"

Belldandy looked away. "I…I'm not sure what I should do. I love Keiichi so much, and I wish for nothing more than to become his wife. But my duty as a goddess is the only thing that's preventing me from accepting his proposal…even though I really want to say yes!"

Kazume watched sadly as Belldandy collapsed onto her knees and cried into her hands. She walked over to the heartbroken goddess and knelt down before reaching over and wrapping her arms around the girls trembling figure. She didn't know what she could say to her, it wasn't like she could convince The Almighty One to let her stay for good on earth. She had a feeling that conversation wouldn't turn out well. But she needed to help somehow, there had to be some sort of loophole that could give some sort of exception for Keii and Bell. Their love was something that was rare to find, it would be a waste not to see it last right to the very end.

With that in mind, Kazume pulled away and held Belldandy at arms length to look her in the eye. "Listen Bell…we'll sort something out. You and Keii belong together, it was practically written in the stars, it had to have been." Belldandy giggled. "So whether you're a goddess or not, you guys are going to stay together; I guarantee it."

Belldandy smiled at her with teary eyes. "Thank you Kazume, you're a good friend." Her face suddenly dawned with realization. "Oh! I just remembered, there's something else I wanted to ask."

Kazume tilted her head. "What's that?"

She twiddled her fingers around. "Well…after Keiichi's accident, it made me realize how short life can be. So I wanted to do something to create memories, in case one of us…you know…doesn't make it the next time something horrific like that happens."

Kazume tapped her chin. "Hmm…you have a point there, so what were you thinking?"

Belldandy smiled brightly. "I want to make a photo album! I'm going out later today to buy a camera, so if you like you can come around later for some photos?"

Kazume grinned. "Sure! Sounds like fun! How does lunch time sound? Cause, you know…Megumi likes to sleep in and everything."

Belldandy giggled. "Yes, understandable, that's fine. I will let everyone else know as well."

Kazume nodded as they rose back to their feet. She walked Belldandy back to the door, staying in the doorway as her friend turned to say goodbye.

She smiled. "Thank you again Kazume, you're a wonderful person. As a matter of fact I'm glad Arimon told you the truth about us, you're a very trustworthy person."

Kazume had the decency to blush. "Wow…uh, thank you I guess."

Belldandy smiled. "Well I will see you later today then! Take care!" And with that she lifted off the ground and flew away. Kazume watched until she was nothing but a speck in the distance then turned back into their house. She stretched and walked towards the bathroom to freshen up for her new day. She grinned at her earlier conversation with Belldandy, oh yeah today was going to be fun.

**(Several hours later)**

After several more hours, Kazume's roommate finally emerged from her bedroom. It was well after ten in the morning, only a couple of hours before the time Kazume promised she would be at the temple for Belldandy's photo shoot. She informed Megumi of what was happening, which had her best friend running around in frenzy to get herself ready and look decent. Kazume smiled bemusedly at her frantic friend, while calmly reading a random book; she wasn't in any hurry.

At around eleven thirty, both girls were ready to go. After making sure to lock everything up, they jumped on Kazume's bike and took off for the temple. When they arrived at their destination, they saw Belldandy, Keiichi, Arimon, Urd, Skuld and all the Auto Club members spread out across the temple grounds. Kazume gawked at the sight, wow Belldandy wasn't kidding when she wanted to make photos. The loud engine of her bike pulled everyone's attention to the girls' arrival. Arimon grinned when Kazume pulled her helmet off, his gaze locked on her face. Ever since he discovered his feelings for her, he always found himself staring at her for long periods of time.

Kazume's gaze turned to him and she smiled brightly and waved. He waved back and made his way towards her.

She smiled when he was close. "Hey Arimon, how's it going?"

He grinned. "Yeah I'm great, you excited for this? It's kinda crowded don't ya think?"

She laughed. "The more the merrier I say! Let's get this Kodak party started!"

Arimon stared at her confusedly. "Kodak? What's that?"

Kazume rolled her eyes. "Never mind. Hey! Let's get Bell to take one of us two! Imagine all the fun poses we could pull off!"

He grinned. "Let's do it!"

The two wandered around, occasionally greeting some friends, until they finally found Belldandy who was chatting merrily to some people as well. She turned to the pair when they approached her and smiled at them.

"Hello you two!"

Kazume smiled. "Hey Bell! Arimon and I want to take a photo together."

Belldandy's eyes brightened. "Oh! Yes of course! Come with me then!"

They followed her to the other side of the temple where it was a lot clearer with less people around. She pointed to the large tree in their backyard.

"Stand over near that tree there, feel free to pose in any way that you like."

Kazume bounced over to their designated spot while Arimon calmly followed from behind. She whirled around and looked at him with a wide grin.

"Come here, I want to try something."

Arimon obeyed and placed himself where she wanted him, which was directly behind her. As soon as he stood there, she reached up to wrap an arm around his shoulders and jumped up. His arms reflexively shot out to catch her legs and hold her in a bridal carry. Arimon blushed slightly at their position, what was she thinking? As if she read his mind, Kazume turned and grinned up at him. 'You cheeky girl' He thought with an amused smile.

Kazume motioned towards Belldandy with a jerk of her head. He nodded and turned to smile at the camera, while Kazume winked and made a peace sign. A bright light flashed at them, indicating the picture had been taken.

Kazume cheered loudly. "Wooot! That was awesome! Oh! Where's Megumi I need to take one with her!"

Arimon let the hyperactive girl down, who then bolted away the moment she was on the ground. He chuckled as he watched her dash over to her best friend who was chatting to her brother. Kazume pulled on her sleeve, pointing in his and Belldandy's direction, all the while bouncing on the balls of her feet. He shook his head and walked away to give the two friends space. If Kazume wanted him again, he was sure she would find him.

Arimon shifted his gaze around the temple grounds. Friends and acquaintances talked and laughed amongst each other, some coming up to Belldandy for a picture. He watched as Kazume and Megumi struck a pose, the latter with an arm around her friends shoulder as both girls grinned widely at the camera. He smiled at his surroundings, this was the life he had always wished for. To have the people he loved and cared for laughing and smiling without a care in the world. He turned to once again lock his gaze on the girl he had come to love so dearly. He was happy with her, being her friend and being a part of her life. But one day, he hoped they could be so much more, with her loving him as much as he loved her and then maybe…just maybe, he could spend the rest of his life with her.

**End of Chapter**


	6. Change

Chapter Six – Change

Kazume spent the remainder of her day at the temple having fun taking pictures with all her friends, although the majority of them were of her with either Megumi or Arimon. She stayed in a hyper mood for several more hours long after most people had gone home. Eventually all that were left was just herself, the Morisato's, the goddesses and Arimon. After their friends had left, the group found themselves inside the tearoom casually playing card games, and it was anything but quiet.

Kazume slammed her cards down and pointed accusingly at Urd. "That's not fair! You cheated!"

Urd shrugged with a smug smirk. "No I didn't, those are the rules."

Skuld stared hopelessly at her hand. "I don't get it!"

Arimon, who had chosen to sit out and was sitting next to Kazume, grinned. "Come on Kazume, be a good sport. She won fair and square."

The redhead pouted. "I hate this game."

Keiichi and Megumi, who also decided not to play, laughed at their friends' antics. Belldandy then walked in with a tray full of snacks and steaming mugs.

Kazume's eyes sparkled. "Oh Bell! My saviour! You've come with food!"

The goddess laughed. "My you must be hungry then!"

She nodded frantically. "Famished! This stupid game consumed my brain power, I need to reenergize!"

Everyone chuckled at the hungry girl, who swiped her share the instant Belldandy placed the tray on the table. She took a sip from her mug and let out a satisfied sigh. "Aaaah that's the stuff!"

Everyone followed her example, enjoying the snacks Belldandy had provided. Kazume then looked at her watch and figured it was getting late. So after shoving the remainder of her food in her mouth and swallowing the remaining contents of her drink, she stood to her feet and stretched.

"Well…it's been a long day, I might head home."

Megumi stood as well. "Good idea, I'm kinda beat."

Keiichi and the goddesses bid them farewell while Arimon walked them outside. Once they were near Kazume's bike, Megumi hopped on while her best friend turned to say goodbye to him. She grinned widely at him.

"Thanks for the fun day! I had a heap load of fun!"

He smiled. "You can thank Bell for that, she organised everything."

She grinned. "Yeah but who did I hang out with the whole time?"

He smirked. "I dunno…Megumi?"

She smacked his arm. "Smart arse."

He laughed loudly, while she giggled. Meanwhile, sitting on the bike, Megumi quietly watched. The two of them were driving her insane; the way they were interacting clearly suggested there was more than friendship between them. She was positive Arimon had some feelings there; she could see it in the way he looked at her. But Kazume was a completely different story. She knew her best friend cared deeply for the boy, but she wasn't sure whether or not her feelings for him were mutual just yet.

A giggle from Kazume brought her back to reality. She looked over in time to see her friend reach up and wrap her arms around Arimon's neck in an affectionate hug. His arms circled tightly around her waist as he hugged her back. Megumi could've sworn she saw him breathe in her scent, oh yeah the guy was definitely in love with her.

Arimon looked up from his hug and made eye contact with the brunette. She gave him a knowing smirk, silently telling him they were definitely going to talk later. He grinned back sheepishly before pulling back to look at Kazume. He smiled at her.

"You better get going, Megumi's waiting."

She smiled. "Alright then, I'll catch you later."

She gave him a playful salute as she walked back to her bike. He smiled and waved as she jumped on her bike in front of Megumi, turned her engine on and sped off of the temple grounds, down the road and eventually out of sight. Arimon kept his gaze on her, not looking away until the bike had fully disappeared. He sighed to himself; this being in love business was driving him mad. He needed to tell someone his feelings soon or else he was going to mentally explode. His thoughts turned immediately to Megumi. Yes, if there were anyone he could confide it, it would have to be Kazume's best friend. No one knew Kazume more than she did. Satisfied with that thought, he turned and made his way back into the temple.

Kazume yawned loudly as her and Megumi finally walked back into their apartment. Megumi stared bemusedly at her. "Getting tired?"

Kazume smiled. "Just a little, we were there all day."

Her friend nodded. "We did stay a little longer than expected didn't we?"

The redhead nodded letting out another yawn. "Yeah…well I'm heading to bed. What about you?"

Megumi shook her head. "Nah, not really tired. I might do some light reading, that always puts me to sleep."

Kazume smiled. "Alright then. Good night!"

Megumi waved. "Night."

Kazume wandered down the dark hall towards her room. Today had worn her out, she had been hyper for hours, zooming around like a maniac and behaving like a little toddler who had consumed too much sugar. Her wacky behaviour had now left her drained, exhausted and wanting nothing more than to collapse onto her futon. She stumbled into her room, and not bothering to change clothes, she lay down onto her bed, falling asleep before her head had even hit the pillow.

The following week flew by uneventfully as friends went about their daily business. Since Keiichi had now fully recovered from his accident, Kazume wasn't needed quite as often at the Auto Club. But they still needed her to participate in races that only she had the skill for. Belldandy usually stayed at home cooking meals and completing chores around the house, but on occasion she would accompany Keiichi to the university. Urd and Skuld mainly stayed around the house as well, the older working on potions and the younger on her inventions. But lately the latter had been spending a lot of her time keeping an eye on her sister, making sure that stupid man never got too close to her. She had been noticing they were acting more lovey dovey than usual. While she was doing everything to keep them apart, the oldest of the goddess was attempting the exact opposite. Urd was trying everything in her power to trap the lovebirds in a closed space, which allowed her to sit back and enjoy the show of potential romance. But every time she was even remotely close to accomplishing her goal, the younger goddess would always intervene and all her planning would be completely ruined. The clashing of the two sisters usually resulted in a rather loud shouting match.

This very vocal scene was what greeted Kazume one day as she rode into the temple grounds for another visit. She raised an eyebrow upon seeing Belldandy's two sisters on the porch shouting words she couldn't be bothered to comprehend, although she had her suspicions as to what their argument was about. Ignoring their quarrel, she walked up and helped herself into the front entrance. Belldandy had told both herself and Megumi that there was no need to knock anymore, and if they ever came around to visit that they could just go in and out as they pleased. Kazume grinned, that Belldandy was something else entirely; Keiichi sure was lucky to have someone that special in his life.

As she wandered down their corridor, she suddenly noticed how eerily quiet the rest of the house was. 'Where is everybody?' She thought.

"Keiichi? Belldandy? Arimon? Anyone here?"

"Kazume?"

She whipped around to come face to face with the hostess of the house herself. She sighed in relief.

"Thank goodness. Am I happy to see you Bell."

Said goddess smiled. "Well here I am! What can I do for you?"

Kazume rubbed the back of her neck. "Keiichi asked me to come here, said he wanted to do something. But he didn't tell me what."

Belldandy nodded. "Well you are here rather early, Keiichi is still asleep."

The redhead grinned sheepishly. " I do have a habit of waking up earlier than most people."

Belldandy gestured to the tearoom. "Well why don't you take a seat? I'll go wake him up."

Kazume nodded and made her way further down the hall. When she reached the tearoom, she slid the door open and froze. Sitting at the table, completely absorbed in a book was a certain male redhead.

"Arimon?"

The owner of the name looked up from his book and smiled when he saw who called him.

"Hey Kazume, what brings you here?"

She sighed. "Keiichi wanted me for something."

He raised his eyebrows. "Oh…is that so?"

She shrugged. "I have no idea, Bell's gone to wake him up."

The moment she said this, Bell stuck her head into the room. "Keiichi's up and getting ready Kazume, he would like to speak with you."

Kazume nodded. "Alright tell him I'll be there in a minute."

After Belldandy had left, Kazume turned her attention back to Arimon. "Well I better go see what he has in store for me."

He grinned. "Good luck with that."

She laughed. "Thanks, I'm probably gonna need it.'

She gave him one last grin before walking out of them room and back where she came. Once she reached Keiichi's door she lifted her hand and swiftly knocked.

"Come in."

Kazume obeyed the voice and entered the room. She smiled and nodded in greeting to the dark haired man who was waiting patiently. He nodded back in response.

"Thanks for coming Kazume."

She smiled. "Not a problem, what can I do for you Keii?"

He leaned forward and linked his hands together. "Well I was thinking, we're around the same age right?"

Kazume felt a sense of dread creep into her stomach, but she pushed it down and nodded, keeping her face as neutral as possible.

"Then how about you come and spend a day with me at the University?"

Kazume's brain skidded to a halt. "Huh?"

Keiichi laughed. "I thought over it carefully. The only productive thing I've seen you do is work and race for the Auto Club, so I figured it could do you some good to broaden your horizon a little, do some exploring."

It took several more seconds for everything to register through Kazume's mind, and when it did a huge grin broke out on her face.

"That sounds awesome! Count me in!"

Keiichi smiled. "Great, well we'll be leaving in about ten minutes."

Kazume's smile instantly vanished. "W… We're going today?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I apologize for the short notice."

She waved her hands in front of her. "Oh no! That's fine! I guess I wasn't expecting to go so soon!"

He laughed. "Well I'll meet you outside in a bit then. Did you want to come with me on my bike?"

She shook her head. "No I'll just follow you on mine." She stuck out her tongue cheekily. "Just in case I get bored and want to go home early."

Keiichi laughed. "Well the likeness of that happening is pretty high. Oh and another thing, keep a look out for a girl named Sayoko."

Kazume raised an eyebrow. "Why? Queen Plastic of the campus?"

He sniggered. "Something like that, she hates Belldandy."

She looked horrified. "Who in the world could hate someone as wonderful as Bell?"

Keiichi sighed. "Because until Belldandy came along, she was the official Queen of the Campus. And now she feels her reputation is being threatened."

Kazume shook her head. "Wow she sounds up herself."

He shrugged. "Well I thought I should warn you."

She grinned. "Heh thanks. Well I'll go wait out by the bike."

She left the room and wandered back down the hall to the tearoom; she wanted to spend a little time with Arimon before she went out for the day. She slid open the door once again to see him still in the same place and position she had found him in several minutes earlier.

When he looked up she grinned. "Hey, thought I'd come and chat for a few minutes before I leave."

He raised his eyebrows. "Oh, is Keiichi taking you somewhere?"

She nodded excitingly. "Yeah! He's taking me to spend the day at the university he goes to!"

He smiled at her enthusiasm. "Sounds like fun, say…he wouldn't mind if I tagged along too would he?"

She blinked. "Well, I don't think he'd mind, you'll have to take that up with him."

He nodded. "Alright let's ask him when you leave." He winked. "I can get myself there."

She sniggered. "Rub it in why don't you?"

They were interrupted when Keiichi stuck his head in the room. "Ready to go Kazume?"

She nodded. "Yeah I am…hey Kei?" When he looked at her she asked. "Would it be alright if Arimon came as well?"

Keiichi smiled. "Of course, the more the merrier. Just be sure to stick together when we get there, it's a big place and you can get lost easily."

Kazume grinned. "I'm sure we'll live…right Arimon?" She turned her smirk onto her friend who grinned in return.

"Yeah we're big kids."

Keiichi smiled. "Well alright then, let's go I don't want to be late."

They followed Keiichi out of the room and out the door towards the bikes. Arimon took a head start by flying himself up into the sky while the other two headed towards their significant vehicles.

Kazume was easily able to maintain a close distance behind Keiichi as they drove through the heavy traffic. Being on a motorcycle made it easy to manoeuvre around the large number of vehicles. Eventually they turned down a street and a huge building came into view, with a towering statue positioned near the entrance. Kazume stared in wonder around her. The grounds of this place was remarkable, she wasn't expecting the university to be as big as it was. She focused her attention back in time to see Keiichi pulling into the parking grounds of the campus and swiftly moved to follow him.

She pulled in next to Keiichi just as he dismounted his bike. She followed his example and turned around to see Arimon walking towards them.

She grinned. "Hope you weren't waiting too long, we were met with a bit of traffic."

He smiled. "Not at all, I only just got here myself."

She rolled her eyes. "Sure you did." She then turned back to her other companion. "Well Keii? What's first on the agenda?"

Keiichi put up his hands. "You guys are free to wander around and explore as much as you want, I have classes I need to go to."

Kazume clapped her hands excitingly. "Really? Oh this is going to be so much fun! Come on Arimon let's go!"

She grabbed Arimon's sleeve and dragged him in a random direction, waving behind her at the dumbfounded Keiichi. "Bye Kei! You probably won't see us again for the rest of the day! We'll see you at home later!"

Keiichi waved half-heartedly back. "Sure…see you guys."

Meanwhile Arimon was trying desperately to pull away from the vice grip Kazume had on him. Sheesh where did this girl get her strength?

"Hey Kazume! Slow down! Where are we going anyway?"

Said girl turned her head to look him. "Don't know, don't care! We have lots to see!"

He shook his head in bemusement. This girl was something else. Well he wanted nothing but to see her smile, so he would allow her to do as she wished. So Arimon lowered his guard and let the girl he loved pull him into the campus.

They entered into a random door on the side and found themselves in a long corridor with doors on one side and windows on the other. Kazume stared with large curious eyes.

"Wow it's like those long hallways they show in horror films. You know with shattered glass and blood everywhere."

Arimon raised an eyebrow. "You watch that stuff?"

She grinned. "You didn't think I was Little Miss Innocent did you? I can watch some blood and gore every now and then. Doesn't really bother me."

He smiled. "You're just full of surprises aren't you?"

"Well, well who are these new faces?"

The duo turned their heads to see who had interrupted their playful banter. There stood a girl who was reasonably taller than Kazume but was still nowhere near Arimon's height. She had perfect straight brown hair that fell to her lower back and her expression held that of superiority as she leered suspiciously at the newcomers.

Kazume narrowed her eyes slightly at the girls' snobby attitude. "It's none of your business since you're clearly a student here."

The girl glared. "How dare you speak to me like that? Don't you have any idea who I am?"

Kazume shrugged. "Why would I care anyway?"

The brunette scoffed haughtily. "I am Sayoko Mishima, campus Queen of this University. You'd be wise not to forget it."

Kazume's eye twitched. So this was the Mishima girl Keii warned her about. Wow he wasn't kidding, she thinks she's the Queen of the Campus? This chick had nothing on Belldandy. She grinned at her.

"Oh don't you worry, it'll be hard not to forget."

Sayoko glared at her tone. "And what is that supposed to mean?"

Kazume's grin widened. "I've heard of you…Sayoko Mishima, and of your widely known reputation. Word on the street is that you're nothing but a stuck up wench who can't keep her nose out of other people's business. And when someone interferes with yours, you do everything in your power to destroy them…sounds like someone is guilty of hypocrisy, don't you Arimon?"

The now smirking Arimon nodded in agreement while Sayoko by now practically had steam coming out of her ears. Kazume restrained herself from laughing at the infuriated expression on the girls face.

Her smile then disappeared and she turned serious. "You listen to me, Mishima. I've heard all about how you hold strong dislike for a girl named Belldandy." Sayoko's eyes widened at the familiar name but she remained quiet when Kazume continued. "I will say this only once. Bell is a close friend of mine, so if I hear you have been causing any trouble to her or even Keiichi, then you will have to answer to Arimon and me. And trust me…we're the last people you want to mess with." She snarled the last sentence out to make sure Sayoko got the message.

The taller brunette stared with wide terrified eyes at them. For some reason this smaller, harmless looking girl intimidated her. It could have something to do with the very tall redhead man standing next to her. But the two of them gave off a vibe that would scare even the meanest guy on campus. What was it about them that scared her so much?

"It would be a wise idea for you to move along Miss Mishima."

The deep male voice pulled her out of her reverie. She looked at the steely glare of the girls' friend. His sharp amethyst eyes pierced into her own brown ones and she couldn't help the cold shiver that ran down her spine. She gulped and slowly began backing away.

"Well…uh…I won't bother you anymore. Have a pleasant day!"

And before they could blink, she had dashed back the way she had supposedly come, leaving a trail of smoke behind her.

Kazume exhaled loudly. "Gee she was a bit of a handful, we'll need to keep an eye on her. We may have scared her, but that doesn't mean she won't attempt to do something to Bell and Kei."

Arimon smiled. "Don't you worry, if she tries anything I'll be sure to know."

Kazume sighed. "I wonder what she has against Bell?"

Arimon put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure it's nothing to worry about. She doesn't seem to have any power except for her pride and popularity. It's nothing we gods and goddesses can't handle." He winked as he said this.

She chuckled. "Hey quiet down about that stuff, you never know who's listening."

He shrugged. "Relax I know when to be careful. Now come on let's keep looking around."

They continued walking from door to door, exploring each room to see what lesson was taught there. A couple of times Kazume's enthusiasm had gotten the better of her and she burst into a classroom that was full of students attending class. But instead of the usual embarrassment one would experience in this situation, Kazume politely apologized claiming she had the wrong room and swiftly exited, pulling a confused Arimon with her.

This was a routine that went on for the next few hours until finally Arimon suggested they go grab some lunch. Kazume stared down at her watch in surprise.

"Lunch time already? Wow I didn't realize how fast the day had gone."

Arimon chuckled. "We still have half a day left."

Kazume sighed. "Yeah but we've looked around pretty much all of the campus already. Hey! Look it's Keii!"

Arimon followed her gaze to where Keii walked out one of many doors to head towards the canteen area. Kazume ran towards him while waving frantically at him.

"Hey Keii!"

Said man jumped in surprise at being shouted at. He looked their way and seemed to relax when seeing who it was.

"Gee Kazume, I thought you were my sister. She's the only other person who would yell my name like that."

She grinned cheekily. "Sorry, I've been in a weird mood all day. Say is Megumi here? I haven't seen her all day, I had left our apartment before she even woke up."

He nodded. "Yeah she is, I'm on my way to meet her for lunch. Care to join me?"

Kazume's eyes brightened. "Ok! I'll head there now!" Before the boys could even blink, she had zoomed off to see her best friend. "I'll meet you guys there!"

Arimon chuckled at Keiichi's stunned face. "She's quite the firecracker isn't she?"

Keiichi sighed. "Where does she get all that energy?"

Arimon patted his shoulder. "Believe me I've been asking myself the same question, and I'm not even human."

Keiichi turned towards him. "Say Arimon, do you mind if I ask you a personal question?"

Arimon raised a suspicious eyebrow. "Uh…sure I guess."

"Do you have feelings for Kazume?"

Arimon stared in surprise at him, was he that transparent? "Why do you ask?"

Keiichi smiled knowingly. "You should see your face every time you look at her. Everything about you seems to soften. Doesn't take a genius to notice."

Arimon sighed. He may as well tell him the full truth; someone was bound to find out eventually.

"Alright you caught me. But it's more than just simple feelings…I'm in love with her."

Keiichi stopped and looked in surprise at Arimon. "You're…Wow, are you serious?"

Arimon nodded. "Whether she's around me or not, I can never get her out of my head. And on the days we hang out, I have to make sure she's distracted with something else so she doesn't catch me staring at her all the time."

Keiichi smiled. "Gosh you really have it bad for Kazume don't you?"

Arimon smiled in spite of himself. "Yeah I really do."

"HEY GUYS OVER HERE!"

The boys turned their heads to see a smiling Kazume waving them to some seats with an equally excited Megumi sitting next to her. Keiichi glanced beside him to see Arimon's reaction and was not disappointed. The taller mans' eyes were full of nothing but love and tenderness for the redhead girl. Keiichi smiled in understanding, he knew exactly how Arimon felt; he was also in love with a wonderful girl.

The boys joined the girls on the bench, Kei next to his sister and Arimon next to Kazume on the other side. The four friends enjoyed their lunch and conversed amongst themselves for the next half hour. Kazume happily munched on a meal that her roommate had brought along and was happy to share between them. While the girls ate their meal, Arimon observed them from the corner of his eye, doing his best to avoid being obvious. But then the object of his affection let out a small giggle and he found his stare fixated on her. He watched with a small smile as Megumi leaned forward and whispered something the boys couldn't hear. It must've been funny because next moment Kazume threw a hand over her mouth, barely containing the spurts of drink as small streams sprayed from the cracks of her fingers. She took a moment to swallow the remainder of contents in her mouth before collapsing into a fit of giggles with her arms clutching her stomach. Any other person would've disregarded her unusual overly hyper behaviour, but that wasn't the case for Arimon. He saw a girl that he loved, who he believed to be truly happy for the first time in her life. He watched as her brown eyes lit up, swirls of chocolate and caramel mixing together. The bright sun reflected off the soft pools, giving them a gentle golden glow. Now with a slightly open jaw, Arimon moved his gaze down to her mouth. Since discovering his feelings for her, he was constantly day dreaming about how it would feel to kiss her. To have those soft pink lips gently pressed up against his own, and to run his hands through her silky, fire coloured hair.

"Arimon, are you okay? Is there something on my face?"

Arimon snapped out of his fixation on Kazume to see she was staring at him with concern. Oh crap, how long had he been gazing at her?

He grinned sheepishly. "Oh no… I just sort of…fazed out. And…uh…I just happened to be staring at you. Sorry about that."

Kazume seemed to accept his excuse and turned back to her meal. But when he went to turn away, he caught the eye of Megumi who was smirking knowingly at him. He flushed with embarrassment and averted his gaze from her, only to be met with the same mischievous expression of the brunettes' brother. He groaned in aggravation, he wished he could dig himself into a hole right now.

But Kazume was none the wiser to the secretiveness of her friends. She finished her lunch and was ready to explore the rest of the University. Jumping to her feet, she hugged Megumi and Keiichi goodbye and once again dragged Arimon by his sleeve back the way they came. Arimon was barley able to bid goodbye to the siblings as she yanked him off the bench and back onto the campus grounds; this was going to be a long day.

"Stupid, conniving, selfish COW! Who in the hell does she think she is?"

Arimon sweat dropped as Kazume stormed inside her apartment later on that evening. The hours following their lunch break at the University had run smoothly. But at the end of the day as students were leaving their daily lectures, they had once again crossed paths with the so-called campus queen Sayoko Mishima. The brunette had seemingly forgotten being threatened earlier since she did nothing but taunt and insult Kazume the moment she laid eyes on her, claiming that she was a good for nothing, midget tomboy that guys wouldn't give the time of day for. She even went as far as sidling up to Arimon and clinging possessively onto his arm, despite his desperate attempts to shake her off. Sayoko's next words were the reason Kazume was in the foul mood she was in now.

"Why don't I do you a favour and take this man off your hands? He's way too handsome for a girl like you, you'd be nothing but a burden to him."

Arimon watched as something flashed in Kazume's eyes before they turned blank. She bowed her head downwards a little so that her bangs hid her expression. Sayoko smirked with satisfaction, thinking that she had again come out on top, but Arimon could feel a sense of dread build up in his stomach. He knew that right now Kazume was a ticking time bomb, and this girl had no idea. He struggled to escape Sayoko's tight grip on his arm, he did not want to be in the line of fire when Kazume exploded.

His eyes widened in fear when she lifted her head and glared hard at Sayoko. If looks could kill then this girl would be dead more times than he can count. The brunette had also seemed to notice the death glare she was receiving and her smile instantly vanished. Arimon was just able to manage to pull his trapped arm the moment Kazume let out a growl and leapt towards the taller girl, who squealed in fright and dashed away with a furious redhead on her tail. Arimon was able to reach out and catch Kazume's arm in time to prevent her from killing the girl, but it didn't stop her rant.

"THAT'S RIGHT YOU BETTER RUN! CHICKEN! STAY AWAY FROM MY MAN!"

Arimon's jaw dropped. 'Her man?' Does that mean she has feelings for him?

But whatever it meant, it didn't seem Kazume was aware of her sudden declaration. The rest of the afternoon had her steaming and ranting on about how she couldn't stand 'That Mishima wench.' Even now as they returned home, her anger didn't seem like it was letting up anytime soon and Arimon didn't want to leave her alone until she had calmed down. But as luck would have it, her best friend and roommate walked through the front door.

"Kazume? Anybody home?"

Arimon opened his mouth to announce himself but was interrupted by Kazume zooming past him and flattening her roommate in a tackle.

"Megumi! I'm so grateful you're home!"

Megumi stared down in surprise as her friend clung to her then looked up at Arimon. "What the heck is going on? Why does she sound so frantic?"

He sighed. "We had a run in with Sayoko Mishima, she said some things that made Kazume angry. She's been in a foul mood for a while."

Realization dawned on Megumi's face. "Oh, I thought I heard yelling." Her eyes then widened. "I'm sorry to kick you out Arimon, but I need to have a private chat with my roomie here."

He nodded. "Perfectly fine, I need to head back to the temple anyway."

Kazume, who had finally calmed down, let go of Megumi and stood up to say goodbye to him.

Sensing the usual routine, Megumi grinned at Kazume. "I'll go wait in your room Kaz."

Kazume smiled. "Ok I'll be soon."

As her best friend disappeared down the hall, Kazume turned back to Arimon.

"Alright then my good sir, please allow me to walk you out."

Arimon smiled and bowed. "Why thank you milady."

She giggled and gave him a curtsey. He then offered his arm to her which she willingly accepted and tucked her hand into the crook of his elbow. They smiled at each other as he led her out the front door.

Megumi sat in the darkness of her best friend's room, waiting patiently for her to return from saying goodbye to Arimon. She had many things to discuss with Kazume regarding said man in relation to her friendship with him. But as far as Megumi was concerned, there was a lot more than friendship involved. Those two were too close and intimate to be 'just friends'. Oh yes, she was going to have words with that girl.

"Hey Megumi, sorry to keep you waiting. Why are you sitting in the dark?"

She grinned. "Hey Kazume, come sit down. We have much to discuss."

Kazume sighed and sat down, sensing the tone in her best friends voice. Interrogation, here we come. With the moonlight now shining through her window, she could just make out Megumi's outline as she leant forward and stared intensely at her. Yup, this was going to be a big talk.

"You're in love with Arimon aren't you?"

Kazume groaned. "For goodness sake Megumi what's the big idea? Why do you keep insinuating I have feelings for him?"

Megumi rolled her eyes. "Oh please who are you trying to convince? You obviously didn't hear what you said during that little outburst of yours today."

Kazume narrowed her eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about. Sayoko was putting her possessive claws all over Arimon and it was obvious he didn't like it. So I told her to stay away from him."

Megumi laughed. "That's not what I heard!" She cleared her throat. "Stay away from my man!"

Kazume stared her flabbergasted. "I did not say that!"

Megumi rolled her eyes. "Oh please I heard it from a mile away. At the time I wasn't sure who it was, but when Arimon told me earlier that you got real pissed at Sayoko I put two and two together. Come on Kazume! You're in such denial, why won't you just admit it? It's not like he hasn't given you a reason not to fall for him."

Kazume opened her mouth to reply but no sound came out. Her friends' words echoed inside her mind. Did she have feelings for Arimon? Would it be so bad to be in love with someone like him? She thought back to when she first met him and how cruel he had been, but she had long since forgiven him for his past actions. The bitterness of those first few weeks was now nothing but a distant memory. Now whenever she thought of Arimon, all she saw was the gentle, kind and compassionate man that he now was. For the first time in weeks, that gentle but burning feeling rose in her chest when Arimon appeared in her mind. She placed her hand over her chest to feel her rapidly beating heart.

Was Megumi right? Was she falling in love with him?

**End of Chapter**


	7. Denial

Chapter Seven: Denial Before Acceptance

Sleep became difficult for Kazume over the next couple of weeks. Megumi's words from that night were plaguing her mind every night, causing her to question her feelings for a certain handsome redhead. Quite often she found herself thinking back to that day at Keiichi's University and her rather furious outburst at the Mishima girl. Megumi was insistent that Sayoko's flirtatious move on Arimon had her feeling threatened and making her wonder if Kazume felt more than friendship for him.

All this flashed in her head as she paced around her bedroom. She ran a frustrated hand through her hair, feeling rather annoyed with herself and her roommate. Anytime Arimon showed his face, Megumi would nudge her gently in the ribs and jerk her head suggestively in his direction. Kazume would just roll her eyes; ignore the gesture and wave hello to her male friend. So one day when Kazume and Arimon rode into town for a day together, Megumi visited her brother and his girlfriend in need of someone to rant to over her friends infuriating denial.

"I mean it's obvious to everybody! Including Arimon! He's all accepting of his feelings for her, but she refuses to believe she's feeling anything because she's so damn scared of being hurt again!"

Keiichi sighed as he listened to his sister tirade. "Look Megumi, we all know Kazume has been to hell and back when it comes to relationships with men. So you can understand her hesitancy to pursue romance with him. Even though we all know she cares about him a great deal."

Megumi groaned. "I know, I know. I just…she's at her happiest when she's with him. Whenever he walks into the room her eyes light up like a friggin traffic light. And a few weeks ago, they started parading around arm in arm. Geez he buys her random presents every now and then and she'll squeal like a little schoolgirl and kiss him on the cheek! It's like they're already a couple, it's driving me insane!"

Belldandy, who had also been listening, placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "We can all see there is certainly a spark between them. But we can't do anything right this moment except just let nature run it's course. We cannot interfere Megumi, that will only lead to disaster and possibly heartbreak for them. But don't you worry, if it is certain they are meant to be than the universe will find a way to bring them together."

Megumi stared at her in astonishment. "Gee Keii where'd you find this girl?"

Keiichi laughed. "Thought you'd be used to her wisdom by now Megumi."

Megumi sighed. "So what you're saying is that I just leave them alone and let things happen on their own?"

Belldandy nodded. "That's really all you can do."

Needless to say, Megumi went home feeling less satisfied than she did when she first arrived at the temple. She knew Belldandy was right and that if she tried to push her two friends together the outcome could potentially turn disastrous. But she refused to be completely out of play. She would gently nudge them along, but on a subtle level to avoid suspicion. As she drove down their street, she saw the two same people on her mind pull into the driveway on her best friends motorbike. A small grin grew on her face. 'Time for some spying.' She stopped her vehicle a little ways down the street so they wouldn't see her. She quietly crept along the sidewalk until she reached her apartment and slowly peeked over the hedge that had been blocking her view. What she saw and heard only convinced her all the more there was something going on between her best friend and her male companion.

Kazume stood shyly in front of Arimon, looking everywhere but at him and nervously shuffling her feet. She wasn't sure why she felt so awkward with him all of a sudden, but lately if she looked him straight in the eyes, her voice would get caught in her throat and her whole body would freeze up. There had been fewer words shared between them all day due to Kazume's timid behaviour. If Arimon hadn't been so caught with his own feelings, he would've been more attentive to how different she was acting. But he had spent the majority of those hours admiring how beautiful he thought she was so he was oblivious to the possible chance that his love for her could potentially be mutual.

But now he stared curiously at her as she shuffled her feet and avoided eye contact with him. Why was she acting so weird?

"Are you alright Kazume?"

She jumped slightly, startled by the sudden question. "Oh…yes I'm fine. I guess I'm just kinda tired."

He nodded though inside he didn't feel entirely convinced. "Understandable, I should let you go inside. Megumi might be back soon anyway."

She finally looked at him and smiled. "Yeah that's true." Then just like that she looked away again. Her right hand reached across and nervously rubbed her left arm. "Well…uh…I should probably go inside."

He grinned and rubbed the back of his head in the same manner. "Yeah…okay."

Megumi watched as Kazume slowly stepped towards Arimon until there was only an inch between them. Then slowly she lifted her head and leaned up to place a gentle kiss on his cheek. Her lips lingered there longer than usual, which caused Megumi's eyebrows to shoot upwards. She had to restrain from laughing as a small blush appeared on Arimon's face. Well there's something you don't see every day. After several slow seconds, she pulled away and lowered back down. Megumi barely heard her mutter goodnight to him before she walked past him and into the house. Unbeknownst to Arimon, Megumi saw her turn slightly in the doorway to give him a tender smile before she gently closed the door. Megumi smirked to herself; this was more than enough evidence to convince anybody of the growing attraction between these two.

She snapped out of her thoughts when she saw Arimon finally shake his head and walk away from their apartment. She stood up straight and leaned casually against a nearby wall, waiting for him to notice her. But as he kept walking it became clear that he was too caught up in his own thoughts to even see he had an audience, so Megumi decided she would make herself known.

"Enjoy yourself there, Romeo?"

Arimon's head whipped upwards and his eyes widened at the sight of her. "Megumi? What in the world are you doing?"

She shrugged. "Came home early, but I didn't want to interrupt so I waited."

His jaw dropped as he looked back at the apartment and back at her again. "Did…did you see everything?"

She tapped her chin. "If you mean you and Kazume acting awkward as hell around each other and then her giving you a suspiciously long kiss on the cheek, then yeah I saw everything."

Arimon sighed and placed his hand over his face. "Man…this is embarrassing."

Megumi waved her hand. "Aw come on Arimon! I think it's great! Don't you see what's happening?"

Arimon removed his hand and looked at her. "What do you mean?"

Megumi winked. "That shy behaviour from Kazume just now and the way she kissed you. Doesn't that make you wonder about her feelings about you?"

He sighed. "If she had those kind of feelings for me then she would've confessed by now. Kazume's not the type to hold back what she thinks about people. And besides…I'm the last guy that deserves her affections."

She raised an eyebrow. "Why do you think that?"

He stared incredulously at her. "Are you kidding? Don't you remember what I did? I said the worst thing anybody could say to her! I broke her heart and made her cry! Why would she ever consider falling for a guy like me? I don't deserve her!"

Megumi smiled comfortingly at him. "Arimon…she's long since forgiven you for that. She doesn't care about what you've done in the past. It was several months ago. You have no idea just how grateful she is to have a guy like you in her life. Seriously, I'm surprised she's not already head over heels for you."

Arimon visibly deflated. "It's torturing me. _She's_ torturing me. You have no idea just how many times I've wanted to take her in my arms and confess everything. Tell her how much I've come to love and cherish her. But I don't want to frighten her by dumping something so huge on her…she's been through enough."

Megumi gazed at him. "You really love her that much?"

He nodded. "I would do anything…give up everything, so I can spend the rest of my life with her."

Megumi didn't know what to say to him. But she sure as hell had plenty to say to her roommate. With a new resolve, she smiled and clamped her hand on his shoulder. "It'll all work itself out. Just keep doing what you've always been doing. Keep loving and caring for her like you have been, and then maybe someday soon…she will love you as much as you love her. And I will be there every step of the way."

Arimon smiled at her. "Thanks Megumi, you're a good friend."

She grinned and gave his shoulder a friendly pat. "I do what I can. You head on home, I'm going to have a chat with our lovely Kazume."

He nodded. "Alright, but don't mention anything about what I said to you."

Megumi rolled her eyes. "Of course I won't, that's your business. And just to make it even, I'm won't tell you about the conversation I'm about to have with her."

He grinned. "I guess that's fair. Well I'll see you around Megumi."

She waved goodbye and watched as he strode down the sidewalk and eventually disappeared around a corner. She then turned around and made a beeline straight for her front door. This was going to be a fun night.

Arimon chose to take the take his time going home so he casually walked along the path, his mind clouded with thoughts. What Megumi had said to him had really hit him hard. Kazume might have feelings for him? It was true she had been acting quieter than usual just minutes ago, but he had just assumed she was tired from their long day. He raked a hair through his dark red hair, 'who was he kidding? She was a sweet, innocent, caring and fun loving girl. He spent most of his life causing misery and hating humans. Plus he was immortal. For centuries he had watched hundreds of mortals being born, live and eventually grow old and die. And eventually he would have to endure the same thing with Kazume.' No…she deserved to be with a man who could live a normal mortal life with her. It was just how he said to Megumi earlier…he was the last person that deserved her.

A sudden strong sense of something caused Arimon to slightly pause in his tracks. He felt a familiar aura nearby and immediately knew he had a visitor. Looking around, he ducked into a small, dark street and walked to the side to make sure he was hidden by the shadows. He looked around again and this time called out.

"Getting a little rusty aren't you? I could sense you a mile away."

A second figure stepped out of the shadows and for the first time in several months, Arimon came face to face with his own amethyst eyes.

The Demon Queen smiled. "Good to know you're still as sharp as always my dear nephew."

He glared at her. "Cut the crap. What do you want?"

Her smiled vanished. "Don't take that tone with me. You disobeyed me."

Arimon raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? What horrible, rebellious thing have I done now _Aunty_."

Hild sneered. "You didn't honestly think I wouldn't find out did you? About you and that little human brat?"

He snarled. "Don't talk about Kazume that way!"

She yelled back. "You used to say the same thing about every single human being!"

He turned away. "So what? People change."

Hild growled. "_She _changed you! You've gone all soft! And you let her make you that way!"

Arimon glared. "What the hell does it matter to you?"

She ignored his question and jabbed an accusing finger into his chest. "I warned you…that if you fell in love with ANY human that there will be severe consequences!"

He swatted her hand away. "And what if I don't care? What if I want you to take my powers away? Being half demon and living for centuries has only caused me misery and pain! But ever since I met Kazume, I've experienced nothing but love and happiness for the first time in my life! And she's the person who gave that to me! I owe her everything!"

Hild shouted. "Listen to what that girl has done to you! You're nothing but a spineless, whipped puppy! Answer me this Arimon…who is this girl to you? What does she mean to you?"

"I LOVE HER!"

Hild stared wide-eyed at him. "You…actually claim you've fallen for her?"

Arimon looked away. "Yes…I've fallen helplessly in love with her. And I'm not sorry in the least. She means the world to me."

Hild sighed. "I thought maybe by coming here tonight I could talk some sense into you. But I see now there is no changing your mind."

Arimon glanced at her. "It was more a change of heart."

Hild rolled her eyes. "Whatever, these lovey dovey clichés make me feel nauseous." She leaned forward until she was inches away from her face. "I am going to give you one last chance to forget about this girl and return to the Demon Realm."

Arimon kept his gaze on hers. "And what will you do if I don't?"

She smirked at him. "Let's just say…you better keep a close eye on that girl of yours. Be a shame if such a lovely person went missing."

Hild found herself lifted up by the shoulders and slammed against the wall as he snarled at her.

"I swear…if you so much as lay a FINGER on Kazume I will tear you to shreds!"

She smiled at him, completely unfazed by his violent attack. "Well…I see you're still carrying the angry, possessive demonic side. Us demons were always protective of those most precious to us."

Arimon's angry expression slowly disappeared and he lowered Hild back to her feet. He turned away angrily. "Get out of here. I have nothing more to say to you."

Hild smirked. "Fine, whatever you say. Be well my nephew, we will be meeting again soon." And with that she stepped back into the shadows and was gone.

Finally losing his temper, Arimon slammed his fist angrily into a nearby wall and causing the brick to shatter. He breathed heavily, doing his best to calm himself down. But then words from Hild flashed in his mind.

"You better keep a close eye on that girl of yours. Be a shame if such a lovely person went missing."

Panic and fear rose into Arimon's heart. Kazume. He needed to protect her at all costs. Despite already being so close to their apartment, he propelled himself into the air and flew straight to the girl's home.

"I'm telling you Megumi! I'm not in love with him!"

As soon as Megumi had walked through their front door, she had steered herself straight into Kazume's room and interrogated her best friend. She had immediately confessed to seeing her affectionate kiss earlier and was now trying to convince her that her and Arimon were definitely way passed friendship.

"And I'm telling you that there's a whole load of denial coming from you right now!"

Kazume groaned. "Can you please just drop it? I don't want to talk about this."

Megumi sighed. "I just…all I want is to see you happy Kaz. You know that right?"

Kazume smiled. "I know Megumi. And I love you for that."

Megumi smiled back. "But I see how you are with him. You more carefree than you are with anyone else. Including me. I think he can make you happy."

Kazume didn't answer. She couldn't tell Megumi why she wouldn't want to allow herself to fall for Arimon. While it was true she was scared of sharing an intimate level with a man, given her life experience with the opposite gender. She was also afraid of going through the same turmoil as Keiichi and Belldandy. She knew how much they loved each other and she often wished she had that for herself. But she could also see how much they were suffering. She knew one day Belldandy would have to return to heaven, and that inevitable day was going to leave both of them crushed and heartbroken. It was for that reason she was terrified of developing feelings for Arimon. Not only would she feel the same devastation, but also it would once again mean another man in her life would leave her.

Megumi stared concernedly at her friend whose face had turned blank. "Kaz?"

Kazume snapped her eyes towards her. "Huh?"

Megumi raised her eyebrows. "You alright?"

Kazume smiled. "Oh! Yeah…fine. I just-"

'Bang! Bang! Bang!'

The girl's heads whipped around at the sound of someone knocking rapidly on the front door. Megumi stood up and walked down the hall to answer it.

"Its rather late…who could be here at this hour?"

She barely opened the door when Arimon pushed it open and rushed past her.

"What the hell Arimon?"

He ignored her and headed straight for Kazume's room. He roughly slid the door open, making the redhead jump. She looked at him in surprise.

"Arimon? What are you doing here so late?"

Arimon let out a sigh of relief. "She didn't touch you. You're safe."

Kazume gave him a weird look. "Yeah I'm safe and…I'm sorry who didn't touch me?"

Arimon closed the door and knelt in front of her. "You need to know something."

Kazume noticed his voice was shaking. "Are you ok? I've never seen you so on edge before."

Arimon dropped his head into his hands. "I was on my way back just now. And…I received an unexpected visit from Hild."

Kazume tilted her head. "You've mentioned her before haven't you? She's your Aunty.

Arimon nodded. "And the Ruler of all Demon kind."

Kazume's eyes widened. "Oh…so…what did she want?"

Arimon lifted his head and looked at her. "She's not very happy with me."

Kazume scooted herself forward a little. "Why's that?"

Arimon sighed. "She's doesn't like humans very much. She's like me when we first met only…ten times worse."

Kazume bit her lip. "So…what did she say?"

Arimon grimaced. "She's well aware of how close you and I are. She said she's going to give me one last chance to revert back to my old demonic ways."

Kazume leaned forward. "And if you don't?"

Arimon stared at the ground. "She didn't give me any obvious threat, but she did imply what a shame it would be if my friends suddenly went missing." Arimon felt guilty for not telling Kazume the full truth of how the conversation carried out. But he feared that if he told Kazume everything, she might catch on to how he felt about her.

He was surprised when a pair of smaller hands grasped his own. He looked up to meet Kazume's warm brown eyes as she smiled softly at him.

"Is that why you came rushing over here? Because you were worried she had hurt us?"

Arimon turned his hands upside to grasp hers. "Not both of you…just you."

Kazume's faced turned to one of surprise. "Why just me?"

Arimon sighed again. "Because out of all the friends I've made here…you're the one that's most important to me."

Kazume gazed at him. "Arimon…what are you saying?"

Arimon tightened his hold on their hands. "I…I just-"

'_Knock, Knock.'_

"Hey Kazume? Is everything alright in there?"

Arimon pulled his hands away and hastily stood up, looking everywhere but at Kazume. "I…I should go. Belldandy is probably wondering where I am."

He turned around, slid the door open and walked down the hall and out the front door. Megumi, who had been standing at Kazume's bedroom door, watched him leave before turning to stare at her best friend.

"Kazume? What in the hell was that all about?"

Kazume didn't answer. She stared at the empty space where Arimon was sitting just moments before. She looked down at her hands, thinking of how he had been holding them. His grip had been tight, but not in the way where they hurt. It was gentle but at the same time…desperate and pleading, like he was trying to tell her something. And his eyes, he had never stared at her that way before. Like she was something precious he wanted to hold and protect with his life. Or someone that he loved more than anything.

Kazume's eyes widened. It wasn't possible…did Arimon really love her in such a way? She looked up at her roommate.

"Megumi…I'm so confused."

Said brunette knelt down in front of her. "What's going on Kazume? Why did Arimon come here and then leave minutes later like he was on a race against time?"

Kazume hunched forwards and hugged her legs. "The way he was looking at me…no one, let alone a man, has ever stared at me that way before."

Megumi felt put out from having her question dodged. "Well what did he want?"

Again Kazume evaded her question. "What if you were right Megumi? What if I am in love with him and I've just been refusing to admit it?"

Megumi groaned. What was the use? "Well you won't find the answer to that by sitting around here and mentally torturing yourself over it."

Kazume looked at her. "What should I do?"

Megumi tapped her chin. "Well you should do what all people do. Go out on a date with him. Take him somewhere fun."

Kazume stared. "A…a date?"

Megumi nodded. "Yeah, why not? What's something fun you like to do?"

Kazume thought for a moment. "Well…I do enjoy dancing."

Megumi grinned. "Awesome! Take him to a club! Show him a good time!"

Kazume smiled. "You know what? That sounds like a good idea. I'll take him out this Friday night."

Megumi cheered. "Yeehaw! This is great!"

Kazume rolled her eyes. "Yeah whatever. Well I'm going to bed."

Megumi grinned and stood up to let her best friend sleep. "Alrighty, I'll see you in the morning. Good night!"

Kazume smiled. "Night."

After her roommate had shut the door, Kazume lay down and settled herself under her covers. Her stomach was now full of knots and butterflies in anticipation for the coming weekend. Sure, her and Arimon had hung out alone many times before. But she couldn't help the feeling that this time it would turn out completely different. As she closed her eyes and succumbed to her sleep, an image of Arimon appeared in her mind. He was standing close to her, his arms wrapped tightly around her and saying that he would protect her and always be with her. And without realizing it, Kazume fell asleep dreaming of the handsome god, with a tender smile on her face.

Kazume gulped nervously while clenching and unclenching her sweaty hands. Last night she had taken Megumi's advice and was planning on asking Arimon out on an official date. And now here she was, standing in front of Keii and Bell's temple and trying to build up some courage to knock on the blasted door. Just as she was raising her fist, she didn't notice a tall figure approaching her from behind.

"Hey Kazume, wasn't expecting you this morning."

Kazume squealed in fright and whipped around to face whoever scared her. She exhaled heavily when she saw it was the very man she came to see.

"Arimon…holy hell you gave me a heart attack.

The redheaded man laughed. "Well you looked a little lost. You do remember you don't have to knock right?"

Kazume grinned sheepishly. "Right…guess old habits die hard. Anyway, I actually came to see you."

Arimon raised his eyebrows. "Really? To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Kazume shifted her feet. "Well I wanted to you ask you…to go out with me somewhere."

Arimon stared at her. "You mean…like a date?"

Kazume shrugged. "Whatever you want to call it. I just want to take you somewhere fun."

Arimon grinned. "Somewhere fun huh? Sounds good. When are we going?"

Kazume smirked. "Tomorrow night. Fridays are always the night to go out partying."

Arimon suddenly felt nervous. "Partying? Where are we going exactly?"

Kazume bounced on the balls of her feet. "We 're going dancing!

Arimon gulped. "Dancing?"

Kazume grinned. "Yup!

Arimon forced a smile. "Can't wait."

What a lie. Arimon dreaded dancing. The only dancing he ever did growing up was ballroom lessons his Aunt forced him to attend. The dancing they did here on earth looked scary and out of control. But then again Kazume was a hyper and outgoing person; she would fit right in with those places. So by swallowing his pride and focusing on the girl he loved, he found himself in the busy city and being dragged by one frisky redhead into a downstairs club where he could see flashing disco lights and hear music blasting so loud you could probably hear it a couple of blocks away.

Arimon stood stunned at how many people were crammed into one space. He looked sideways at Kazume to comment but the sentence died in his throat. Kazume was beaming at her surroundings with her eyes glittering brightly. Arimon gulped, thinking it would be better to keep his mouth shut. He felt a violent tug on his arm as Kazume pulled him into the jumping crowd. Once they found a small space somewhere in the middle, she let go of his arm and began jumping around. Arimon stood next to her awkwardly with his hands in his pocket.

Kazume glanced at him while she danced and noticed how uncomfortable he seemed. Deciding to help him out, she bounced up to him and grabbed his forearms. When he looked down at her she grinned.

"Come on! Dance with me! Follow my movements!"

She swung their arms from side to side and started up her bouncing again. Arimon laughed at how energetic she was. He humoured her and joined in with swinging their arms. They were interrupted when the music suddenly stopped and a much slower song sounded through the room.

Arimon smiled. This was more what he was familiar with. With a renewed confidence, he turned to fully face Kazume who raised an eyebrow at him. He bowed and offered her is hand.

"May I have this dance milady?"

Kazume stared at him. "But I thought you didn't dance."

Arimon grinned. "Dancing alone with loud, ear deafening thumping music isn't really my style. I was raised to twirl around a lady with ballroom dancing."

Kazume looked surprised. "You do ballroom dancing? Seriously?"

Arimon smirked. "Don't believe me? Come here, I'll show you."

Kazume shrugged and placed her hand in his. "Sweep me away, Romeo."

Arimon closed his hand over hers and pulled her close. He wrapped an arm around her waist while she placed hers on his shoulder. He then began steering her smoothly around the floor, leading her into an elegant waltz. Kazume felt her stomach flutter; she had no idea Arimon could dance so well. She let him steer her around until their waltz slowed down into gentle swaying. Kazume looked up to see Arimon gazing intently down at her. She felt herself blush but kept her eyes locked with his. The two stopped dancing and stared at each other.

Kazume's mind was racing at a million miles an hour. She couldn't look away from him; his amethyst orbs peered through her soul causing her stomach to twist into unbearable knots. For the first time, she was very aware of the muscles of the shoulder her left hand was resting on. What in the hell was wrong with her? What was this feeling? It was driving her insane.

She found herself mesmerized by him, and as if by some invisible force, moved in closer to him. He in turn moved his hands to her back, and stepped forward as well. They began to slowly lean in until loud, fast music boomed through the room again and their moment was gone. Realizing just what was happening, Kazume yanked her hands back and moved away from him. Arimon let go of her waist and awkwardly averted his gaze.

They stood, unsure of what to do, until Kazume muttered. "Maybe we should head home."

Arimon nodded and followed her back through the crowd. Once they were outside and on the street, the tension between them became unbearably thick. Kazume felt horrified, wondering what on earth drove her to such an impulse and why the hell Arimon was making her feel the way she was. On the other hand, Arimon couldn't erase the thought that he had come very close to kissing her. If only the music hadn't interrupted them. They walked side by side with a large gap between them, both looking in opposite directions and unsure of what to say to each other.

But eventually the silent became unbearable for Kazume and she forced herself to look at him. "So…you're a very excellent dancer."

Arimon looked at her, surprised by how quickly she managed to break the ice. "Well, my Aunt made me attend dancing classes when I was growing up. It was the only useful skill that world ever taught me."

She smiled. "Well you were amazing. I would love to waltz with you again sometime."

He smiled back. "It would be my pleasure."

They continued to chat all through the night. Arimon even used his magic to send Kazume's bike off by itself and carry her while flying, and so they could keep talking without the disruption of a loud motorbike engine. Unfortunately their evening came to an end as he landed in her front yard. He gently let her down and she turned around to bid him good night.

"Thanks for coming tonight. I had a really fun time."

He smiled at her. "Any time. I had fun as well. Thank you for inviting me."

She leaned up and quickly pecked him on the cheek. "Good night Arimon." She turned away and hurried inside so he couldn't see her blushing. What she didn't see was Arimon waving goodbye to her retreating figure, wearing a dreamy and love struck expression.

Kazume practically sprinted to her bedroom, slid the door open, dashed inside and slammed it behind her. She leaned against it with her hand clutching her now heavily beating chest. Images from that night swirled through her mind. Arimon standing awkwardly with his hands in his pockets, Arimon looking confident when the slow song began, Arimon bowing to her formally and asking her for a dance, Arimon holding her close as he glided her gracefully across the dance floor, Arimon staring softly at her as they leaned into a kiss that never happened, Arimon holding her close as he flew her home, and finally, Arimon smiling gently at her as he bid her good night.

Kazume collapsed onto her bed in shock as a realization crashed onto her. She was falling for Arimon. She had these strong feelings for who knows how long and she only now just began to see and accept them. Crap. As much as she hated to admit it, Megumi had been right. Her friend had seen this coming a mile away, but she had refused to admit it. She had been blinded by her fears that one day Arimon would leave her forever to fulfil whatever duty it was Gods and Demons were required to do. But now that she had accepted feeling so strongly for him, despite how scared she was of losing him, all she wanted was to hold him close and keep him forever. Kazume sighed and forced herself into a restless sleep as one question plagued her mind.

'Was it so bad to wish for a love that was impossible to last?'

**End Of Chapter**


	8. Falling

Chapter Eight – Falling

(One Week Later)

Kazume closed her eyes as the wind gently blew through her hair and kissed her skin. She was standing on a ferry that had left the dock just before sunset. Belldandy had suggested she enjoy the boat ride and view to help keep her mind of her present troubles. It had been a week since her date with Arimon and she was doing everything she could to avoid him. When Arimon had cornered her a few days earlier and asked why she wasn't speaking to him, she reassured him it wasn't anything he had done. But she couldn't tell him the real reason why whenever she was near him, she wasn't able to look him in the eyes without her face turning bright red and why her knees turned to jelly whenever he stood too close.

Her behaviour around Arimon was terrifying her. She could think of no logical explanation why she was acting this way around him. Megumi had insisted it was because she was in love, but Kazume didn't want to think that was true. She was aware she had strong feelings for Arimon, but she wasn't sure if it was love yet. Luckily for her though, Belldandy had sensed the stress Kazume was feeling, so she had suggested the ferry ride to give her some alone time. And Kazume couldn't be more grateful to her friend; this was just what she needed.

Kazume breathed in heavily and let out a long sigh. What was she going to do? She couldn't keep avoiding Arimon; she cared about him too much. And she could see her forced silence was starting to affect his mood. He too was keeping his distance, seemingly aware of Kazume's need for personal space. But she noticed he seemed depressed since she had pushed him away. She sighed again. She was hurting him… that much was obvious. What she needed to do was sit him down and talk things out properly. But all she wanted to do now, was to escape her own complicated reality and enjoy some quality time by herself.

Arimon paced back and forth impatiently in Kazume and Megumi's living room. The latter sat on a couch, staring as the anxious man wore a hole in their carpet. She let out an exasperated sigh at the situation they were in. Several hours ago Kazume had left the house to go who knows where and spend some alone time thinking everything through. About an hour later, Arimon had appeared on their doorstep demanding to speak to her roommate. After explaining where she was, he had insisted he wait inside their home until she returned, even if it meant waiting all night. So now Megumi watched in bemusement as he now strolled around the room. She had to hand to him he had remarkable patience; she would've given up hours ago. 'He must really love the girl.' She thought to herself.

"Damn it…it's getting dark, Where is she?"

Megumi smiled at his protectiveness. "Relax, Kazume's a big girl I'm sure she can look after herself. Plus I doubt anyone can catch her on that motorbike of hers."

Arimon sighed. "I know all that. But even so I can't help but worry."

Megumi grinned. "You poor, helpless, love sick fool."

Arimon glared at her. "Shut up."

"Hey Megumi! I'm home!"

Both perked up at the sound of Kazume's voice and Megumi called out. "In here Kaz!"

Kazume walked in to greet her best friend properly but stopped dead in her tracks when she saw an unexpected guest.

'A…Arimon."

Arimon hesitantly stepped towards her but stopped when she backed away. "Kazume…please I can't take this any longer. I'm begging you; please tell me what's wrong. I thought we were friends."

Kazume looked away. "I…I can't."

Arimon stared at her. "You don't want to be friends anymore?"

Kazume looked back at him with disbelief. "Of course I still want to be friends! Our friendship means the world to me! It's also why I can't be around you right now! It's too hard!"

Arimon gazed at her. "I…I don't understand."

Kazume sighed and turned to Megumi. "Can you give us a minute?"

Her best friend smiled and nodded. "Sure, take your time." Giving the two a glance, she walked out of the room and left them alone.

Kazume turned back to Arimon. "I'm sorry Arimon, I wish I could explain. But I'm not sure myself what's bothering me."

Arimon sighed. "But is it worth avoiding me and jeopardizing our friendship?"

Kazume looked horrified. "Of course not! I…" She sighed. "I'm so confused."

Arimon walked up to her and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Listen, I'm not going to push you to tell me what's bothering you. But you need to know that no matter what I'll always be here. I care too much about you Kazume."

Kazume's eyes filled with tears. Even though she had hurt him, he had been the friend he had promised he would be. But somewhere inside her heart, she knew she felt something for him in a whole new way. Pushing that aside for now, she rushed forward to give him a friendly hug, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.

Arimon laughed and hugged her back, happy that everything was okay between them again. He held her for a minute to soak in her warmth, but was startled when he heard her sniffling. He pulled her back to arms length and was horrified to see a couple of tears falling down her face.

"Kazume…are you alright? Did I say something wrong?"

Kazume choked out a laugh. "No…you didn't. I'm just happy…that's all. In all my years I've never had friends has wonderful has you and Megumi. The both of you mean the world to me."

Arimon smiled and placed a hand comfortingly on her head. "Well we're not going anywhere. Whether it's myself or Megumi, you'll always have someone beside you."

Kazume smiled at him through watery eyes. What an idiot she had been. Why would avoiding Arimon improve any problem she had? No matter what she felt for him, she knew she could always rely on him for support and comfort.

An idea suddenly sprung in her mind and she grinned at Arimon. "Say I know something fun we can do!"

Arimon raised his eyebrows. Well she got over that fast. "What's that?"

He grew nervous when her grin widened. "Let's all go to the amusement park!"

He froze. "Uh…what?"

Kazume looked at him with her eyes practically sparkling with excitement. "Oh pleeeaaassee? I've never been! I've always wanted to go to one!"

Arimon chuckled. "Well I definitely don't have a problem with it. Is it just going to be us?"

Kazume cheered. "Yaaaay! And of course not! I'm going to see if Megumi, Keii and Belldandy want to come too!"

Arimon smiled. "Great, but what about Urd and Skuld?"

Kazume's eyes widened. "Oh crap! I forgot about them! Yes! Absolutely! They can come too!"

Arimon chuckled. "So when are we going."

Kazume mulled it over. "How about this weekend? Just because I know Keiichi is busy with his courses and assignments during the week."

Arimon nodded. "Sounds good. Anyway I should let you go so you can tell Megumi about the fun weekend."

Kazume grinned. "Okay, thanks for coming around. I'm glad we could have this talk."

Arimon smiled. "Yeah me too." He walked past her and towards the front door. He turned to her again as she started to follow him.

"You go talk to Megumi. I'll help myself out."

Kazume tilted her head at him. "Are you sure? I always come out and say good night to you."

He grinned and held his arms open. "Well come here and give us a hug then."

She giggled and ran into his hug. She clung onto him for several seconds, breathing in his scent. Oh gosh what was this man doing to her? She pulled away and smiled up at him.

"Have a good night."

Arimon smiled back at her. "You too, sweet dreams Kazume."

She kept her gaze on him as he walked out and flew into the night sky. She raised her right hand and placed it on her chest. From the moment she first saw Arimon standing in their living room, her heart had been beating so hard and fast it felt like it was going to explode. Kazume had never felt like this about anybody before, and she was scared of what it meant.

That she may be falling deeply in love with Arimon.

(That following weekend)

Kazume bounced on the balls of her feet in anticipation as she stood in a very long line. Right now she was with her friends waiting at the entrance of an enormous amusement park. Next to her, Arimon smiled in amusement at how excited she looked. She was acting just like a little kid.

He thought back to a few days ago when he had received an unexpected call from her. He had listened in adoration as she ranted on about how she had spoken to all her friends and everyone had agreed to the fun weekend they had planned. And her hyper ness hadn't died down since, in fact it only seemed to increase the closer the day came. Now here she was, practically jumping up and down like a five year old. Most people would find this immature, but Arimon found this side of her rather endearing. Finally after a half hour wait they had each paid their entrance fees and now entered the massive grounds.

Having also never been himself, Arimon took the time to take in his surroundings. He saw different varieties of activities such as fun games to win large toys, or huge thrilling roller coasters where he could clearly hear the screams from those riding them. He cringed when the long train sped upside down into a loop, that didn't look too appealing to him. But unfortunately for him, Kazume had other plans.

He stumbled slightly when she yanked on his sleeve and pulled him towards the very same roller coaster he was dreading. 'Oh hell, please tell me she doesn't want to go on that hell ride.'

"Hey Arimon let's go on that one! It looks hell fun!"

He directed his gaze to where she was pointing and felt all his blood drain from his face. She wanted to go on the very ride he was planning on avoiding, but he loved the girl too much to refuse so he let her drag him towards the line. The wait was too short for Arimon's tastes and he soon found himself strapped in a small carriage next to Kazume. He glanced at the girl beside him who was bouncing anxiously in her seat. Well he was glad one of them was enjoying themselves. The ride suddenly jerked forward to slowly move around the corner before stopping again, giving them a scarily full view of just how big the whole ride really was.

"Five, Four, Three, Two, One..."

Arimon had barely registered the count down when without warning their train took off at breaking speed. He reflexively reached forward and held on desperately to the thick metal bar keeping him inside. A shriek sounded beside him and he turned his head to see Kazume holding her arms above her head and letting out deafening excited screams. After what was really only around five minutes, but had felt like a long gruelling hour for Arimon, the two finally jumped out of the train. Kazume walked around as if she had just won the lottery and Arimon wondered why she still had energy after screaming for almost the entire ride.

A few minutes later, they ran into Keiichi and Belldandy who had just been casually strolling around the park with their hands entwined. Arimon couldn't help but feel a little envious of them. The two pairs approached and when Keiichi took one look at the overly hyper Kazume and a traumatized Arimon, he couldn't help wondering what might have happened.

"Well aren't you two a sight for sore eyes? Where've you guys been?"

Kazume pointed to the towering roller coaster with a maniacal grin. "We just came from that! Was so awesome!"

Belldandy gave a pitiful look to her cousin. "You don't look like you agree with her."

Arimon smiled. "It's fine. She had fun, that's all that matters to me."

Keiichi could've sworn he saw Kazume look at Arimon with a rather soft expression, but quicker than he had blinked she went right back to being hyper again. Not paying it any mind, he asked. "So what was it like?"

Kazume smiled. "Exhilarating! You only have a short count down warning before you shoot off like a rocket! And there are these sharp turns when your whole body is facing completely sideways! And those loops are huge! Felt like I was upside down for ages! And the best part about it is that the whole time you're going so fast everything around you is just a blur! I'm totally going on it again later!"

Keiichi watched as Arimon's face went white as a sheet, but luckily for him Kazume seemed to notice and take pity on him.

"It's okay Arimon, you don't have to come if you don't want to. I can see how much you hated it."

Arimon let out a visible sigh of relief. "Wow…thanks. I don't know if I can handle that a second time."

She grinned at him. "Think you can stomach some bumper cars?"

He stuck his tongue out at her. "I'm not that much of a wimp."

Kazume laughed at him then turned to the other couple. "Hey, where are Urd and Skuld? I thought they were with you guys."

Keiichi shrugged. "They ran off as soon as we came in, just like you guys did."

Kazume raised an eyebrow. "So in other words, you have no clue where they are."

Keiichi sighed while his girlfriend giggled. "Yeah…no idea."

Kazume grinned. "Well we still have hours before this place closes; I'm going to go see what other fun stuff this place has!"

Before anyone could respond she grabbed Arimons' sleeve and pulled him in another random direction. Keiichi watched until they disappeared into the crowd then turned to his girlfriend.

"Hey Belldandy, did you see Kazume's expression a minute ago?"

The goddess nodded, her eyes still gazing in the direction the other pair left. "I did...you don't suppose she's…"

Keiichi smiled. "You never know, maybe some good will finally come to those two. Goodness knows they both deserve it."

Several hours later, the split group of friends met up again at the main entrance in the early evening. Most were still fairly energetic apart from Kazume who needed to be half carried by Arimon just to keep her on her feet.

Megumi raised an eyebrow when she spotted her half dead best friend. "Gee Arimon how many times have I seen you carry her back looking so out of it?"

He grinned sheepishly. "Well she was having such a great time; I didn't have the heart to stop her."

Megumi sighed. "What am I gonna do with you boy?"

Arimon smiled. "Listen Megumi, why don't you take Kazume's bike? I'll carry her home."

Megumi looked at him. "Are you sure? It's a fairly long walk."

He smiled mysteriously. "I'll manage; she's not all that heavy."

She shrugged. "Whatever… just make sure she gets home safely."

After he promised he would, Megumi bore farewell to everyone and headed over to Kazume's motorcycle. After she had left, Arimon turned to all the others.

"I'll see you at the temple a little later Bell."

His cousin smiled. "Yes, take care of yourself Arimon."

He smiled and nodded to Keiichi and the other goddesses. He then swiftly walked out of the gates and moved to a spot where no one could see. Looking around again and making sure no one was looking, he carefully scooped up the sleepy girl in his arms and took off into the night sky. Only a few minutes into the journey did he notice that Kazume had finally fallen asleep. At one point she had shuffled around to make herself more comfortable in his embrace. Arimon tightened his arms around her to make sure she stayed warm. When they were a few minutes away from the apartment, Kazume stirred from her sleep and blinked sleepily.

"Where am i?"

Arimon smiled at her. "Hey there sleepy head, you're nearly home."

Kazume glanced downwards and stared wide-eyed at the far away ground. "Holy crap Arimon, you need to warn me when you're going to fly me home."

He chuckled. "Sorry about that, you were pretty out of it so I figured I'd get you home as soon as possible."

She sighed and relaxed into him more. "I guess that's alright then." She smiled at him. "Thank you."

He smiled softly at her. "Not a problem."

When her apartment finally came into view, Arimon descended and landed gently in front of her front door. Kazume glanced into the small car park where she could see her motorbike had already been secured which confirmed that Megumi had long since arrived home.

Arimon was about to put her down when she stopped him with a hand on his arm. "Could you take me to my room?"

He smiled. "Of course I will."

Kazume hung on tight while he used a hand to open the front door. He used his shoulder to nudge the door open then closed it again with his foot, all the while keeping a tight hold on the sleepy redhead. He carried her down the hall towards her bedroom. Once they were at her door, Kazume reached out and slid it open. Arimon stepped inside and walked over to her bed then carefully he kneeled down and placed her on her soft futon. He then grabbed her blankets and pulled them over her form, gently tucking her in.

"Are you all comfortable now?"

Kazume smiled sleepily up at him and, to Arimons' surprise, lifted her hand and rested it gently on his cheek, her eyes glowing affectionately at him.

"Yes I'm okay, thanks again."

Arimon smiled tenderly at her. "You have a good sleep alright?"

She nodded, pulled her hand back and rested it beside her. "You too. Good night."

"Good night."

He watched as she gave him one last smile before she closed her eyes and fell into a peaceful sleep. Arimon stayed there at her side for several more minutes just simply gazing at her. His heart warmed as he stared at her, thinking to himself how much he had come to love her. He promised to himself that he would tell her his feelings someday soon. He didn't care whether or not she felt the same way; all he wanted was for her to know how he felt about her. With that thought, he leaned down to gently kiss her forehead before rising to his feet and slowly backing out of her room. His gaze remained fixated on her until he slid the door shut. Sighing deeply, he walked down the hall and out of their apartment.

He walked silently down the sidewalk with his mind clouded with thoughts. He was so caught up in himself that he didn't notice several dark figures following him in the shadows. Just as he passed a dark alleyway, mysterious hands whipped out and pulled him back in the darkness, leaving no trace in their wake.

"Kazume! Kazume! Wake up!"

Kazume's eyes snapped open to see her best friend desperately shaking her body. "Megumi…what's going on? What are you doing?"

Megumi grabbed her blankets and threw them off her. "It's Arimon! Something's happened."

Kazume bolted upright and stared wide eyed at her roommate. "Arimon? What about him? What happened?"

Megumi sounded scared. "Belldandy rang just now. Apparently he never came home last night; no one's seen him since he left the amusement park to take you home."

Kazume scrambled to her feet and dashed out of her room and headed for the kitchen. She then made a beeline straight for the phone. She picked up the receiver and dialled an all too familiar number. Several ring tones later she heard the voice, not of Belldandy, but her older dark skinned sister.

"_Hello?"_

"Urd, thank goodness. Listen Megumi's just told me that Arimon is missing. Is this true?"

A long sigh sounded from the other side of the line. _"Yes it is. We even tried back tracking his steps from your apartment, but there's no trace of him. It's like he's completely vanished."_

Kazume placed a hand over her chest. He was gone, Arimon had disappeared and no one had any clue where he was. An overwhelming fear rose inside her at the thought of never seeing him again. No…she wasn't going to let this happen, she couldn't imagine her life without him anymore. A thought then flashed in her mind and she felt her blood boil. Hild. That was the only explanation. Only she was capable of abducting someone and leaving no evidence behind. She also remembered how a little while ago Arimon had told her that the Demon Ruler was very angry with his new found bond with her. This would be a perfect motive for her to snatch him up and take him back to Demon Realm.

With renewed determination she spoke back into the phone. "Urd, I've just had an idea."

"_What is it?"_

"What if it was Hild that took him? It's the only logical explanation as to why he would disappear so suddenly. No one else can take someone as powerful as Arimon so suddenly unless they just as strong as he is."

There was silence for a few moments. _"It does make sense, it could very well be the case. But Kazume, what do you plan to do? Confronting my mother is too risky, she's a very dangerous person when she wants to be."_

Kazume growled. "I don't care! That wench took him against his will! I am going to do whatever it takes to bring Arimon back!"

She heard Urd chuckle. _"Wow Kazume, you're going to really extreme lengths to rescue my cousin. Do you really care about him that much?"_

OF COURSE I DO! I LOVE HIM!"

After her outburst the room turned so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Kazume stared blankly ahead of her as she registered what she has just admitted.

"I…I love him." 'Oh my gosh' she thought to herself. 'I'm in love with Arimon, when and how did that happen?'

Urd's voice brought her attention back to the phone. _"Well it's about time you admitted it, the rest of us were beginning to wonder."_

Kazume furrowed her eyebrows. "You knew?"

Urd laughed. _"Oh you dear girl, everyone knew. You and Arimon were the only ones who were oblivious. Speaking of which, are you going to tell him anytime soon?"_

Kazume smiled. "Of course, but I have to get him back first."

"_And how do you plan on doing that exactly?"_

Kazume grinned. "Actually Urd I wonder if you could do me a favour."

"_Oh boy, what is it?"_

Well I want to confront Hild from a safe distance. So if I come over later today would you help me get in contact with the Demon Realm through the phone line?"

She yanked the phone from her ear as Urd shrieked. _"ARE YOU INSANE? My mother will KILL ME!"_

Kazume growled. "No offense Urd but I don't give a crap! All I care about right now is Arimon."

Urd sighed. _"Guess there's no convincing you otherwise. Alright if you can be here in an hour or two I'll help you get through."_

Kazume smiled. "Thank you, I owe you big time."

"_No problem. Don't you worry Kazume, we'll get your man back."_

Kazume blushed. "I'll see you soon then."

She hung up the phone and turned around to head back to her room but stopped when she saw Megumi gawking open mouthed at her. She raised an eyebrow at her friends gobsmacked expression.

"What?"

The brunette grinned. "Did you just say what I think you said?"

Kazume stared at her. "What did I say?"

Megumi's grin widened. "That you're in love with Arimon!"

Kazume smiled slightly. "Oh that… yeah I said it. What's your point?"

Megumi stared incredulously at her. "My POINT? Are you kidding me? Do you know how long I've been trying to get you to admit how you feel about him?"

Kazume smiled, unfazed by her outburst. "And I'm grateful Megumi, without your persistence it probably would've taken me a lot longer to realize how I felt about him."

Megumi grinned. "Well you know it's the best friends' job to make it happen."

Kazume stepped forward and hugged her friend tightly. "What would I do without you Megumi?"

Megumi chuckled and returned her hug. "You'd be so screwed."

Kazume laughed and released her. "Thanks. Listen I'm heading out in a little while, I need you to stay here."

Megumi raised an eyebrow. "Why? What's going on?"

Kazume averted her gaze sideways. "I'm going out to look for Arimon. I need someone to be here in case he comes back." Kazume felt bad lying to her best friend. She knew without a doubt there was no chance of Arimon coming back to their apartment, but she needed to make sure Megumi couldn't discover the truth about the gods and goddesses. She had given Belldandy her word that she wouldn't tell a soul of their secret.

But Megumi was none the wiser to her friends' guilt and agreed to stay home and wait. After quickly refreshing herself and dressing in clean clothes, Kazume left the house and walked towards her bike to head out to the temple. She rode down the road with nothing but thoughts of Arimon racing through her mind. He had only been missing for a number of hours and she was already missing him terribly. With this thought, she turned the bike handle to increase her speed. She sped quickly through the roads and didn't stop until she pulled into the familiar driveway of the temple. 'Probably got flashed a few times,' she thought without really caring much. She parked her bike and jumped off it, yanking off her helmet. She practically sprinted to the door and burst through it without knocking, yelling.

"URD!"

The sound of a yelp and glass shattering sounded from somewhere down the hall. Kazume's head whipped in that direction to see an annoyed Urd appear from inside her room. She glared at the confused redhead.

"Great, look what you did! You scared the living daylights out of me and made me drop an experiment I spent forever working on."

Kazume rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "Sorry about that Urd, I've been in a desperate mood all morning."

The older woman's expression turned sympathetic. "I know Kazume, and I'll do my best to help you. Let's go over to the phone then shall we?"

Kazume smiled and nodded than followed her back towards the door to where their landline phone was resting on a small side table. The girls stood side by side and stared at the device for several seconds until Urd picked up the receiver. She turned and looked at Kazume who nodded for her to keep going. Urd turned back and began dialling a series of numbers that Kazume couldn't keep up with. When she was finished, she held it up to her ear and waited

Several ring tones later, a deep voice rung out. _"You've reached the Demonic Realm."_

Urd took a deep breath. "This is Urd, half demon and half goddess, daughter to the ruler of all demons. Security number is six, nine, three, and eight."

"_You have been confirmed, what matter of business are you stating?"_

"I demand to speak to Queen Hild."

"_Please hold."_

Urd waited patiently as the usual routine followed through. Her request would pass over to Hild and she would decide whether or not it would be accepted. She mentally scoffed, she was confident her mother wouldn't hesitate to speak with her only daughter.

Her thoughts were confirmed when she heard an irritatingly familiar voice chirp through the phone.

"_My dear daughter, I have so touched you went to so much trouble to reach me. To what do I owe the unexpected but pleasant surprise?"_

Urd rolled her eyes. "Actually I didn't want to talk to you at all. My good friend Kazume here has something she would like to speak to you about. I just lent her a hand in getting through to the Demon Realm."

"_Oh I see…" _Urd smirked when she noticed Hild sounded somewhat disappointed. _"Well I may as well humour her then since she went to such lengths just to speak with me. Put her on for me then would you Urd, dear?"_

Urd cringed at the term of endearment but didn't reply. Instead she turned to Kazume, who had been quiet the whole time, and handed the receiver over to her.

"All yours Kaz, but be careful alright? She can easily put words in your mouth. Don't let her take control. Tell her exactly what is on your mind; show her how strong I know you are." She grinned. "After all, you're fighting for the sake of love."

Kazume nodded and took the phone with a determined expression. She held it up to her ear and took a deep breath.

"This is Kazume."

"_So this is the lovely Kazume. It's an honour to finally speak to the girl who my nephew is so fond of."_

Shivers shot through her spine when she heard the devious voice of the Demon Queen, but she wasn't going to let this woman get the better of her.

"Let's cut to the chase Hild, I know you have Arimon. And I demand you let him go this instant."

She heard Hild laugh. _"That's quite the accusation! What in the world makes you think I have him?"_

All fear Kazume may have felt to begin with vanished and was replaced with white, hot anger. "Because Arimon is a powerful being, it would take an extremely strong person to be able to kidnap him without leaving any trace! This kind of despicable behaviour isn't anything I'd expect from Gods or Goddesses, only you Demons would stoop to this level!"

"_Well aren't you a smart cookie? I see there is no deceiving you. Alright then, I will admit I ordered Arimons' capture, but it was for his own good. I am his legal guardian and seeing him become a worthless human lover was eating away at me. So I was forced to take action, since the stubborn boy refused to return to this world willingly."_

Kazume growled. "Why would he return to that dreadful place when he has people here that actually love and care about him?"

Hilds' voice instantly turned from casual to ice. _"He has demon blood in him! This is where he belongs! Do you not realize that before he met you, he was a cold-blooded monster that wouldn't have cared if the human race rotted away?"_

Kazume snipped back at her. "Are you also forgetting that he has God blood as well? I have seen the good inside him and I know that's who he truly is! I am demanding you let him go!"

"_Don't be foolish child, why would I take orders from a worthless human? Arimon will be remaining here in the Demon Realm with me, and there is nothing you, those pitiful goddesses or even my own daughter can do anything about it. Just accept the inevitable little girl; you will never see Arimon again."_

Before she could even reply, Hild had hung up and cut off their connection. Kazume pulled the phone away and sadly stared at it. She was barely aware of Urd staring at her in bewilderment. She placed the receiver back onto its rightful resting place, but kept her hand there; Hilds' final words to her swirling inside her mind

'_You will never see Arimon again.'_

"NOOOO!"

Kazume's resolve finally broke as she fell onto her knees and sobbed. Her cry of anguish had startled Urd who was instantly on the floor to help comfort her. Kazume turned and collapsed onto her friend with tears streaming down her face. Urd put her arms around her and patted her head.

"Kazume, talk to me. What did she say to you?"

The broken hearted girl pulled back a little but kept her gaze on the ground. "Sh…She has him, Hild admitted she had Arimon captured and brought back to the Demon Realm."

Urd continued to pat her head encouragingly. "Did she say why?"

Kazume nodded. "She hated how fond he grew of humans in such a short space of time. So she captured him and she has no intention of releasing him."

She lifted her head and Urd felt for the young girl. Her eyes were filled with sadness and heart-break while never ending tears flowed down her cheeks. "Urd…I'm never going to see him again. I'll never get the chance to tell him I love him."

'No, it can't end like this.' Urd thought, 'There has to be a loophole somewhere. Knowing my mother, she's probably crossed some deeply, hidden lines to pull of this stunt. Looks like I'll need to do some digging.'

She smiled comfortingly at Kazume. "Listen to me Kazume, why don't you go and rest somewhere? You must be exhausted after speaking to that demon."

Kazume shook her head. "I can't just sit around and do nothing!"

Urd patted her shoulder. "You don't have to worry. I'll take care of this. I promise that by the time I'm finished, you'll be able to see Arimon again."

Kazume stared warily at her. "What are you planning Urd?"

The goddess grinned. "All will be revealed. Now you go lie down, feel free to borrow one of our rooms. No one else is home anyway."

Kazume sighed and gave in. "Alright, I trust you to bring him home." She gave her a small smile and walked past her towards the bedrooms. Urd smiled when she coincidentally happened to choose Arimons' room. 'Don't you worry Kaz, you'll see him soon. And you Arimon, I promise I'll get you out of that hell hole and back to the girl who loves you.'

With the promise locked in her mind, Urd cracked her fingers and headed to her younger sisters room. She grinned when she spotted the large computer in the corner.

'It's show time.'

**End of Chapter**


	9. Together

**Chapter 9 – Together**

"Urd, it's already been three days; you need to take a break."

Belldandy stared in concern as her older sister didn't reply and continued staring intensely at the computer screen. A few days ago she had come home to find the older goddess researching who knows what on Skulds' computer and a completely knocked out Kazume curled up on Arimons bed and clutching one of his shirts. Urd had averted her attention long enough to inform Belldandy of what had transpired been Kazume and the Ruler of Demons. Belldandy had turned to go and be with the redhead but Urd had sternly told her not to interrupt her sleep. So she had no choice but to stand aside while a depressed Kazume walked around almost lifeless and her sister did everything in her power to bring back the one man that could put the life back into the once spunky girl. But there was just one thing Belldandy didn't understand.

"Urd I don't understand, how does computer research help with bringing Arimon back?"

The white haired goddess stopped reading and turned to her sister with a unreadable expression. "I'm trying to find a loophole in Arimons' capture. It isn't in a demon's nature to obligingly follow rules, and that includes Hild. I know she's hiding something, all I need to do is find out what."

Belldandy sighed. "Then please hurry, I can't stand to see Kazume in the state she's in right now. She hasn't been herself in days."

And she was right. At that very moment, Kazume was aimlessly walking around the same park she had shared many memories with Arimon, both good and bad. The last few days had been absolute torture for her. She struggled to sleep at night, but when she did she was constantly plagued by nightmares of seeing Hild laughing maniacally while Arimon sat bound in a giant cage. She would try to run and help him but he would only become further away. This would end with her bolting up in bed screaming out Arimons' name and sweating profusely.

Kazume sighed tiredly. She hadn't really talked to anyone, not even Megumi. She knew her best friend was worried and she felt guilty distancing herself from her. But Arimon was all she could think about, and the more the days flew by, the more anxious she became to seeing him and feeling his arms around her again. She consciously hugged herself, imagining being wrapped up in Arimons' embrace. She always felt safe when he was near her, and now that he was gone, she felt extremely vulnerable to everything around her. Her bottom lip quivered slightly.

'Arimon…please be okay.'

Arimon glared daggers at his aunty from his place in the giant barrier. "Was it really necessary to put a stupid shield around me?"

Hild only looked amused. "Now, now dear nephew, I can't have you running off now can i?"

He growled. "Damn it Hild! Let me go! I thought I told you I don't give a crap about this place anymore!"

Hild leered at him. "As long as you have demon blood running through your veins than you will be forever bound to this place. So until you've accepted that than I have no choice but to keep you in there."

Arimon scoffed. "You can do whatever you want. It won't change how I feel about Kazume."

The name reminded Hild of the short but intense conversation she had with said girl. She smiled slyly to herself. 'What's the harm? It's not like he'll be seeing her anytime soon.'

"Speaking of her Arimon, she made a phone call here the other day."

Arimon gave her a weird look. "What are you talking about? Humans can't call the demon realm."

Hild smiled knowingly. "That is true, but that girl of yours is a very smart one. She had Urd call first to get through the line security. Only then did she take the phone to speak directly to me."

Arimon was impressed but kept his face blank. "So what did she say?"

Hild tapped her chin. "Well nothing seems to escape her. She said she had figured out almost straight away that Demons were responsible for your disappearance."

Arimon smiled. 'That's my girl.' He thought fondly

"But she knows not to get her hopes up."

Arimon glared at her. "What did you do?"

Hild shrugged. "I told her she won't ever see you again, since I don't really intend on ever letting you go back to earth."

Arimon snarled. "YOU BASTARD!"

He charged at the large barrier only to be roughly thrown backwards. He lifted his head and glared at Hild who grinned smugly.

"Settle down, Arimon. As powerful as you are, you're no match for my barrier."

She walked away cackling while Arimon fell to his knees. He lifted his head and stared longingly into the outside world. Thoughts of Kazume flowed into his mind. He closed his eyes as he pictured her face, her wondrous smile that could light up the whole world. He would never see that smile again, never hear her laugh again. He would never be able to tell her how much he loved her.

For the first time in his life, Arimon cried.

**(Another few days later)**

"That's it! I found it!"

Urd pumped her fist triumphantly into the air. After a full week of restless searching, Urd had finally found what she had been looking for. Highlighting what she had discovered, she copied and printed out the documents. She grabbed the pile of paper and raced out of the room in search of her sister.

"Belldandy!"

Said goddess came out of the kitchen at the sound of her name. "Urd, what's the matter?"

Urd held up the documents with a smile. "I found it. Something so obvious, it's even been included in heaven's laws as well."

This caught Belldandys' attention. "May I see?"

Urd gave the papers to her. Belldandy took them and quickly scanned over the writing. As she neared the end, her eyes widened. She looked back up in astonishment. "How could we have forgotten this? This law is centuries old! The Almighty One himself is part of it."

Urd smirked. "Exactly, and Hild has completely taken it for granted." She placed her hands on her sisters' shoulders. "Belldandy, I need you to go out and find Kazume. Bring her here and keep her in Arimons' room."

Belldandy looked concerned. "It's hard for her to stay in his room, but I understand. What about you Urd? What are you going to do?"

Urd smiled. "I have a cousin to rescue."

Belldandy watched as her sister walked out the door. She knew exactly where she was going; she only prayed that Urd's plan would work.

Kazume lay on her futon and gazed blankly at her wall. Her mood had still not improved in the past week but she at least did her best to spend time with Megumi. Her roommate was doing her duty as the best friend to not talk about a certain handsome redhead around her, which Kazume was very grateful for.

A polite knock broke Kazume out of her thoughts and she stared weirdly at the door. 'Since when does Megumi knock?'

Her question was answered when, instead of her roommate, Belldandys smiling face appeared. "Good afternoon Kazume."

Despite how depressed she was, Kazume couldn't help but smile whenever the gentle goddess was around. "Hey Bell."

Belldandy kneeled down next to her and covered one of her hands with both of her own. "I know how sad you must be feeling. But I need you to come to the temple."

Kazume raised an eyebrow. "Why? Is something the matter?"

Belldandy smiled. "Not really. It's hard to explain."

Her cute, lost expression dug on Kazumes' conscience and she sighed. "Alright, I'm coming."

Belldandy smiled and clapped her hands together. "Wonderful! Let's be on our way then!"

As she followed the goddess out of their apartment, Kazume shook her head. 'Why can I never say no to her? She looked sideways to see Belldandy smiling innocently at her. Kazume gulped. 'Why do I have the weird feeling she's up to something?'

Meanwhile, Urd had just arrived in the depths of the Demon Realm. She had been given authorized clearance and she was now making her way to her mother's 'den' as she liked to call it. She walked through a large door and into a spacious room. In the middle lay a humungous barrier. Even from where she was, Urd could feel the immense power this barrier beheld. As she walked closer, she could make out a lone figure slouched in the very centre of it. It was only when she was merely a few metres away did she recognise her long lost cousin.

She smiled. "Glad to see you're still in one piece."

Arimons head whipped up at her voice. His eyes widened at the sight of a grinning half demon; just like himself. "Urd! What are you doing here?"

She kept grinning. "I'm getting you out of here."

Arimon sighed. "And how, may I ask, do you plan on doing that?"

"Yes dear daughter, how do you plan on breaking him out?"

The two cousins looked around to find Hild leaning against a nearby wall with her arms crossed. Her eyes glittered as she gazed at her daughter, who scoffed at her uninviting attention.

"Come now Urd. Is that the hello I get? And after I welcomed you back here with open arms."

Urd scoffed. "I don't need a welcoming. I only came to retrieve Arimon."

Hild sighed. "Well unfortunately for you he's not going anywhere. I thought I made that perfectly clear when I spoke to that human girl."

Urd smirked. "Actually he is." She pulled out the papers she had printed earlier and walked over to her mother. She then shoved them into a surprised Hilds' chest. The demon ruler looked down at them with disinterest. "And what is this supposed to be?"

Urd pointed to the documents. "Thousands of laws passed down over the last several centuries from both Gods and Demons."

Hild glared at her. "And what does this have to do with anything?"

Urd pointed to a certain part on the page. "It states here that if a Demon falls in love with a human 'without' the approval of the present ruler, than he or she would automatically be indefinitely banished from Hell. No one from the Demon Realm, not even the ruler themselves can revoke this law and bring back said banished demon under _any _circumstances. If the ruler is caught holding them against their will after this law has been passed, they will be forced to relinquish their right to rule to the heir next in line, which in this case, would technically be me."

By now Hild was fuming, having been outsmarted by her own daughter. Urd, however, was feeling extremely proud of herself.

"So you see, Arimon had done nothing wrong by falling in love with a human. It is common knowledge that demons generally detest humans and don't usually go out of their way to become romantically involved with them. But it isn't illegal; he is perfectly free to love whomever he wishes. Now Hild, since I have no desire to take over this job of yours. I am giving you an option. You can either willingly let Arimon go and remain Ruler over Demon Kind, or you can continue to be selfish and keep him for yourself. Only setback is that you'll have to surrender your title to someone else."

Urd grinned smugly at her dumbfounded mother. "So…_now _will you let him go?"

Hild sighed and waved her hand. Next moment the barrier that had been holding Arimon captive dissolved and Arimon was set free. The male redhead grinned at his cousin.

"You're amazing Urd, how did you find that loophole?"

Urd smiled mysteriously. "I'll explain later. Why don't you head home? There's someone down there very anxious to see you."

"Wait one moment!"

Urd and Arimon turned to see Hild holding her arm up with a massive amount of dark energy surrounding it. "I may have let Arimon go, but I didn't say anything about letting you run free Urd! If you want to return to Earth, you'll have to fight me first!"

Arimon moved to guard his cousin but she held out an arm to stop him. When he gave her a confused look she smiled. "Don't worry Arimon, I'll come back. She'll be caught dead before she actually kills me."

He nodded. "You be careful then." And with that Arimon once again vanished from Hell.

Urd turned back and grinned at her mother. "So you wanna play do ya?"

Hild grinned back. "It's been a while since I fought you daughter. Let's see how strong you've become."

Urd summoned her own power, the bright surges of lightning dancing around her body. "Bring it on!"

Mother and daughter then charged at each other as darkness and lightning collided powerfully and exploded into a blinding light.

Arimon landed softly onto the soft grass of the temple grounds. He took a deep breath and inhaled the scent of the clean crisp air. He turned his head when the front door slid open to reveal Belldandy. The goddess smiled brightly at him and hurried over to give him a warm hug.

"I'm so happy to see you Arimon. Everyone has been worried sick."

He smiled and patted her back. "I'm alright Bell." He pulled out of the hug and looked at his cousin. "Where is she?"

Belldandy recognised the look in his eyes and smiled. "She's inside, come with me."

Kazume lay on Arimons' futon, once again staring blankly into space. 'I really need to get a grip.' She thought grouchily to herself. 'I can't spend forever staring at walls all day.' She could hear voices down the corridor but chose to ignore them. It was probably just Keiichi returning from his classes. The last thing she needed to see was him and Bell acting all mushy again. Reminders of romance once again brought her mind back to Arimon. She picked up one of his stray shirts that was on the ground and held it tightly. She breathed in his scent heavily. She was so caught up in her world that she didn't hear the door to his room open. Tears threatened to fall again as she tightened her hold on the piece of fabric.

"Arimon."

"Kazume?"

Kazume's eyes went incredibly wide when she heard the deep familiar voice. She looked up at the doorway and was met with the gaze of gentle amethyst eyes. Still clutching his shirt, she slowly rose to her feet. She stared in disbelief as the man she had been missing more than anything was now standing not even five feet in front of her.

"Arimon…is that you?"

He smiled gently at her and held his arms open. "Come now….where's my hug?"

Kazume's eyes quickly filled with tears. She dropped the shirt she was holding and ran eagerly into his embrace.

"ARIMON!"

She jumped into his arms and wrapped her arms tightly around him. Arimon caught her and held tightly around her waist. He could feel her body trembling as she cried openly into his shoulder. He lifted his right arm and stroked her hair.

"Shh, it's alright Kazume, I'm here now."

Kazume tightened her grip. "I thought I was never going to see you again! This last week has been a nightmare!"

Arimon gently pulled away to stare at her confusingly. "What do you mean a week? I was only there for a few hours."

Kazume shook her head. "No…Belldandy told me that time here passes by much faster than it does in either heaven or hell."

Arimon then realized just how hard it really must've been for her. 'It was hard enough being separated from her for only three or four hours. But she had to wait an entire week to see me again.' He pulled her into his arms again and held her tightly. "I'm so sorry Kazume, i won't ever leave you like that again."

Kazume snuggled deeper into his chest. "You promise?"

He smiled and leaned his head on hers. "I promise."

After Arimons' joyful return, Kazume was in much more higher spirits. Everyone was grateful to see her in a much better mood, although the redhead couldn't help but notice her best friend seemed somewhat distant. Concerned and scared, Kazume came home from visiting the temple and headed straight for Megumi's room. She quietly knocked on her door.

"Megumi…can I come in?"

She heard some shuffling and then footsteps coming closer to the door. It slid open to reveal Megumi who stared at her with an unreadable expression.

"Kazume."

Kazume's heart broke at how closed off her friend was. "Megumi…what's wrong? Why won't you talk to me?"

For the first time in their friendship, Megumi glared hard at her. "You didn't talk to me."

Kazume stared, more confused than ever. "What are you talking about?"

Her friends glare hardened. "During the week Arimon disappeared! You didn't utter a word to me! I'm your best friend! I could've comforted you but you pushed everyone away!"

Kazume gazed sadly at the floor. "I'm sorry…I know how ignorant I was. There's no excuse for my behaviour. It's just…" She sighed.

Megumi raised an eyebrow. "It's just what?"

Kazume lifted her head to look at her with quivering eyes. "I can't excuse the way I was feeling. The indescribable pain I felt in my heart at the thought of never seeing him again." She reached forward and gripped her friends' hands. "I know I spend so much time with him, but I love him Megumi. I fell deeply in love with him and didn't realize it until the last moment. And by then I thought it was too late." When Megumi didn't respond, she continued. "But you _were _there for me Megumi. Those last few days before he came back were more bearable because you were there with me. I'm positive that if there was the slight chance he never returned, I would've eventually recovered because I had my best friend beside me."

Megumi's eyes softened at her confession. "But you would still always miss him."

Kazume smiled. "Of course I would, nobody can easily forget a person that important to them."

Megumi sighed. "I'm sorry, I guess it was just hard seeing you so down. I'm not used to seeing you in such a sorry state. You didn't respond to anything I said or did, I wasn't sure what I could do."

Kazume frowned. "I'm really sorry Megumi; I had no idea how difficult it was for you. I…" Her shoulders slumped as she sighed. "…I was being really selfish."

Megumi shook her head and closed her hands around Kazume's. "No, I'm being selfish. You've had a traumatizing life. If anyone deserves to be happy, it's you Kaz." She lifted her hand and placed it on her friends shoulder. "You should tell him how you feel, and don't worry about me. No matter what happens between you two…I'll always be here for you. You're my sister Kaz, I love you."

Kazume smiled and leaned forward to hug her best friend. "Thank you…Megumi. I love you too."

A few days later, Urd had finally returned from the Demon Realm. She had been considerably weakened and had used up a lot of power. But she insisted she was fine and that Hild had willingly let her go after demanding she admitted defeat. Kazume felt guilty and blamed herself for Urd's injuries. She told the older goddess that if she hadn't brought her into it, she wouldn't have gotten hurt so badly. However Urd just shrugged her off and said it was worth it and that she was happy she was able to bring Arimon back to her. Kazume had cried joyfully and said she was forever in Urd's debt. After all that had happened, Kazume felt her friendship with Urd deepen.

Over the next couple of weeks, Kazume remained in a bouncy, cheerful mood. Her bright disposition was contagious to all those around her and people smiled when they saw the chirpy redhead walking down the sidewalk with a skip in her step. But even though her days had improved, there was still one thing that was nagging at the back of her mind. And it was this that had her best friend extremely agitated with her. She was oblivious to Megumi's frustration until one afternoon when she came home after spending the day at the Auto Club. She had barely walked through the front door when her roommate grabbed her wrist and dragged her into the kitchen.

"Megumi! What are you doing? Let go of me!"

The brunette ignored her and forced her onto the sofa in their living room. Kazume sweat dropped when Megumi stared at her with an annoyed expression. She grinned sheepishly.

"Uh…I didn't do it?" She had no clue what was happening.

She jumped when her friend yelled. "You're damn right you didn't do it!"

Okay now she was confused. "…What?"

Megumi rolled her eyes. "Arimon! When are you going to tell him you love him? It's been three weeks already since you figured out your feelings!"

Kazume groaned. "This is why you're having a go at me? Because I'm taking my sweet time with a love confession?"

Megumi nodded. "That's exactly why. I don't get what's taking so long."

Kazume sighed. "I…I just haven't found the perfect opportunity yet. Besides I'm still trying to figure out how he feels about me."

Megumi stared in disbelief. "Are you kidding me? That boy is as transparent as cling wrap!"

Kazume raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Megumi shrugged. "Well if you don't know than I can't tell you. You guys have to sort it out by yourselves."

Kazume huffed. "Fine be that way." But she grinned at her friend regardless, who smiled back. 'Best friends rule.' She thought giddily.

"Hey, Kazume."

Kazume looked over at Megumi who was staring pitifully into their fridge. "What's up?"

The brunette turned and gave her puppy eyes. "If I gave you a list could you run to the store and pick up some groceries? I need a few ingredients for dinner."

Kazume smiled. "Sure thing, I need to contribute to dinner somehow."

Megumi grinned. "Thanks! Let me just write the list down."

Once she was done, she handed the list to Kazume who took it and shoved it in her pocket. She left the house, promising to be back soon and made her way down the street. The shop was only down the road so she figured she would give her bike a rest. She walked casually down the sidewalk in silence until she finally reached the store. She only spent a few minutes walking around grabbing what she needed before making her way towards the cash register. After purchasing the groceries, she exited the shop and started walking back the way she came. She had only been walking a few minutes when an ominous feeling overtook her. She looked around, seeing if anybody was following her, but found nobody. 'Strange, there's nobody around. Then why do I feel so uneasy?'

No sooner had that thought crossed her mind when a strong wind suddenly picked up and blew across the ground. She looked up and saw dark clouds gathering together at an alarming speed. Lightning flashed brightly, landing too close for Kazume's liking. But her attention didn't stay on the bad weather for long when she spotted a shadowy figure emerging from the black sky. She squinted her eyes to see who it was, but they went extremely wide when the newcomer came into view.

Kazume had never met this figure in person before but there was no doubt in her mind as to who it was. She was after all the person who had badly injured Urd, who was also a very powerful Goddess herself. She did her best to keep her composure as she stared straight into the eyes of the Demon Ruler herself. The moment Hild had landed, the dark clouds and lightning instantly vanished, but this had no effect on Kazume. She just stared blankly at the demon woman without flinching.

Hild smiled at her. "I'm impressed young child. Humans are usually intimidated by my entrances, and yet you seem unfazed."

Kazume glared at her. "After what you did to Arimon, and how much you hurt Urd, I feel more pissed off than scared right now. What the hell are you doing here Hild?"

Hild raised her eyebrows. "You are a courageous one aren't you? Standing up to the most feared demon to walk the earth."

Kazume snorted. "More like the most stuck up demon."

Hilds' expression turned dark. "Watch your tongue mortal, you have no idea of the powers I possess."

Kazume shrugged. "Whatever, so did you come here to try and scare me? Well, you're doing a great job so far."

Hild clenched her fist but kept her temper in check. Instead she gave Kazume a forced smile. "I came to ask you a question actually."

Kazume raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

Hild nodded. "I understand you have a close bond to my nephew. Exactly what are your feelings towards him?"

The young girl didn't answer, but Hild watched as a loving, tender smile grazed Kazume's lips. This was enough answer to her and she felt something in her mind snap. She unclenched her fist and dark swirls of demonic power surrounded her hand.

Kazume snapped her gaze to the power around Hilds' hand and she couldn't help a shiver of fear travel up her spine. But she was determined to not show any weakness to the she-devil. So she stood her ground and glared at Hild who grinned smugly.

"You can be as courageous as you want! But it will not stop your inevitable fate! Once I am through with you, Arimon will wish he had never come to earth in the first place!"

She thrust her hand forward and the dark energy sprung forward and pelted at light speed towards the defenceless redhead. Kazume closed her eyes, waiting for the pain, or possibly even death, to take her. When nothing happened, she opened one eye to see an astonishing sight. A bright red light had appeared in front of her and taken the blow from Hilds' attack, both disintegrating in an instant. Kazume stared confused for a second and gasped in surprise when she felt someone wrapped a protective arm around her waist. She looked up to see the welcoming sight of Arimon, whose amethyst eyes glowed with anger as he snarled at his Aunty.

"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH HER!"

While his left arm held her closely to him, his right arm was stretched forward and surrounded by the same red energy that had saved Kazume's life. Something caught Kazume's eye and she glanced back to see Arimons' red wings spread out behind him. 'I haven't seen them since the first night he showed me.' She thought in wonderment. But just as quickly as she saw them, they vanished again back into his body. She shrugged and turned back to the situation at hand.

Arimon glared harshly at the white haired demon. "If you so much as lay another finger on her I will rip you to shreds!"

Hild smiled innocently. "But I didn't touch her, my energy did."

Arimon growled. "Don't screw with me Hild! I mean it, you leave Kazume alone!"

Kazume listened with interest to their argument. Even back when her and Arimon didn't get along, he had never spoken like this to her. 'Shows how extremely pissed off he must be.'

Urd sneered. "That mortal has no business with us demons. I was simply removing a problem."

'Uh oh' Thought Kazume, 'wrong thing to say.'

If it were possible, Arimons voice turned even more dangerous. "SHUT THE HELL UP! It's you who needs to mind your own business you stupid wench! Kazume has done NOTHING to deserve this kind of punishment!"

Hild leered at him. "But you have! Do you not remember the consequences I warned you of? Are you willing to give all that up for one simple human girl?"

Kazume turned and looked quizzically at her protector. "Arimon, what's she talking about?"

Arimon looked at her and his expression became soft. "When I first came to earth, she warned me that if I came too emotionally attached to any human than she would punish me."

Kazume raised an eyebrow. "And what's the punishment?"

Arimon sighed. "I would have my immortality and powers stripped away, which would turn me mortal."

Kazume's eyes widened for a split second before they narrowed into dangerous slits. She pushed Arimons arms aside and moved to lunge at the startled Hild. Arimon reflexively grabbed her waist and restrained her while she snarled and clawed at the air.

"Let me go Arimon! I'm going to kill her!"

Arimon was surprised at how strong she was for a human being, he was struggling somewhat to hold onto her. "Calm down Kazume! You'll be killed if you go anywhere near her!"

Kazume stopped struggling but continued to growl at the white haired demon. "You're a monster! Stripping everything away from him simply because he chose a path that you disapprove of? What's wrong with you, you stupid dictating cow?"

Arimon sweat-dropped, no human had ever insulted his aunty and lived to tell about it. But as long as he was there, he would protect her at all costs.

Hild, however, was highly amused with Kazume's behaviour. "My you are a feisty one, aren't you? Better keep a chain leash on this one Arimon."

Kazume huffed and turned her nose away while Arimon let out an exasperated sigh. 'This isn't going anywhere.'

Hild smirked. "Now where were we? Ah yes you're punishment. I'm afraid I always keep my word Arimon, I will be taking everything from you today."

Arimon stood his ground. "You may do as you wish. I will gladly sacrifice my status as a demon, especially if it means I can remain here on earth with Kazume. I will give up everything to be with her."

Kazume stared at him in surprise. 'He would give up…everything…for me?'

Hild laughed as she lifted up her arm. "Then prepare yourself!"

But before she could summon any power, the clouds suddenly parted and a blinding beam of light shone down on the three. Being human, Kazume couldn't stand how bright it was and buried her face in Arimons' chest. Arimon, on the other hand, gazed in wonder at the hypnotising light. Even though he had never been to heaven, somehow he knew exactly who it was.

"Almighty One." He whispered.

Kazume's eyes went wide with shock. "Al…Almighty One? You mean…God himself is here?"

Arimon smiled and nodded. "Indeed he is."

Kazume hid deeper into his shirt. "Oh hell…"

"**Arimon, it's a pleasure to see you again. You've grown into quite the fine young man."**

A jolt of electricity went through Kazume's body. The Almighty One's voice alone was proof enough of how powerful he really was, and it scared the living heck out of her.

But Arimon was calm as he smiled at the heavens. But before he had the chance to respond, the Almighty One continued.

"**Hild, I'm sure you are well aware of this boy's heritage. He may have demon blood, but half of him also carries that of a God. Your threat to strip him of his immortality cannot be carried out unless I too agree to those conditions, since half of him belongs to the heavens. I personally see no reason for his punishment. This girl has been nothing but a blessing for him, and I see no reason why he can't continue to leave peacefully on earth with her."**

Hild glared at the light, put off by the Almighty One suddenly taking charge. But the God wasn't finished.

"**Hild…I can understand why you would disagree with my words, with you being the Ruler of Demon Kind. But even you cannot ignore that some things must be done the right way. For now I am asking you to leave them be, they have both been through enough…And Kazume."**

Kazume flinched but stayed quiet.

"**I cannot thank you enough for the kindness you have shown Arimon in the past several months. He was raised in a very dark place for many years; you are the light he needed to guide him. Please continue to take care of him.**

Kazume had the decency to blush; it wasn't every day that the Almighty One complimented you. She suddenly noticed that everything had gone quiet. She looked up to see the beam of light had disappeared, leaving her and Arimon alone with the Demon Ruler once more. Hild glared at the pair of them.

"Just because high and mighty up there said a few strong words, don't think for a second I'm anywhere near finished with either of you."

She leered at them again before disappearing from view. 'She'll probably make a noisy exit from somewhere else.' Kazume mused.

Kazume breathed a sigh of relief and stepped back from Arimon. "Gosh, that certainly wasn't on my 'to do' list today."

Arimon chuckled. "We immortals do have a tendency of being rather unpredictable."

Kazume smiled at him, but another thought nagged on her mind. "Say Arimon?"

He gazed at her. "Yeah?"

Kazume tilted her head. "Did you mean what you said earlier? You told Hild you would willingly allow her to take away your abilities just so you can stay with me. Is that true?"

Arimon stared intensely into her eyes, only now noticing how alone they were. 'Now's my chance, I have to tell her.' He lifted his hand and gently placed it on her cheek. It was now or never.

"Kazume, you already know I care about you so much. I would do anything to protect you and stay by your side."

Kazume blushed. "Arimon…"

He shook his head. "No let me finish." When she nodded he continued. "I meant everything I said to Hild. The Demon Realm holds no place for me anymore, especially now that I've been banished for good. And I don't feel there's much need for me in heaven either. My whole life I've wandered around, trying to figure out my place in this world. For a long time I thought my life was meaningless and without a purpose…until the day I met you." As Arimon laid his heart in front of him, he never took his gaze away from Kazume's brown eyes. "When we first met, I was very cruel to you. But it wasn't out of hate. I was jealous of the close friendship you had with Megumi and the others, I had never had such a close bond with anyone. So I took my self-pity and hatred and I took it out on you…which was the last thing you deserved. Even now I still wonder why you would forgive such arrogance."

Kazume's eyes were now filled with compassion. He easily saw the message and knew she was forgiving him all over again. 'I really don't deserve her.'

"But eventually you became my friend, the best friend I could've asked for. You've been kind to me, and have shown me a love I have missed for centuries. That kindness is what led me to how I'm feeling right now."

Kazume stepped closer to him, her heart pounding against her chest. "And how are you feeling?"

Arimon smiled at her. "Overwhelming happiness, because I am able to be with the person I love the most." He stroked her cheek with his thumb. "I love you Kazume, more than anything or anyone else... I love you."

Kazume's eyes were wide and tears were falling down her face. Her chest burned with affection from his confession as she finally realized her deepest feelings. All those times she would feel the warmth inside her from just simply looking at him, she now knew it was because of her deep love for him. Smiling brightly at him through watery eyes, she returned his loving gaze with her own.

"I love you too Arimon…so very much."

Arimon felt he was going to burst with joy. She loved him! She had returned his feelings! He looked down to see her eyes now shining brightly with love for him. His eyes darted to her lips and then back to her eyes, silently asking if it was okay. She smiled in response, telling him that he could. He moved closer to her and gently placed his hands on her waist. Kazume raised her arms and rested them around his shoulders. For a short moment they gazed at each other until they simultaneously moved their faces closer together. When they were inches apart, Kazume stopped and closed her eyes, allowing him to make the final move. Arimon took the hint and gently closed the gap between them, softly placing his lips on hers. The kiss remained chaste for a few seconds before Kazume tightened her arms around his neck and angled her head to deepen their lip-lock. Arimon felt as if he had ascended to heaven. He had been dreaming for months to feel how soft Kazume's lips were and words could not describe just how delectable they tasted. His earlier thoughts hadn't done her justice, her mouth was so much more heavenly than he could've ever imagined. Somewhere during their embrace, Arimon had lifted one of his hands to run it through her silky, fire red hair.

Oxygen eventually became an issue and they were forced to break apart. They pulled their heads back but kept their arms wrapped around each other. Kazume smiled at him and placed a loving hand on his cheek. Arimon leaned forward to touch their foreheads together, which Kazume giggled at. 'She has the cutest laugh.' He thought fondly.

The silence was finally broken when Arimon whispered. "So…does this mean you'll be my girlfriend?"

Kazume giggled at him and playfully tapped his nose. "Do you think I would've kissed you like that if I didn't?"

He grinned. "Touché."

Kazume's eyes suddenly went wide with horror and she yanked herself out of his grasp. "Oh no! Megumi! I'm really late!"

Arimon stared at her. "What?" It was then he noticed several plastic bags on the floor with groceries scattered on the ground. 'I was so caught up in everything I didn't even notice she had those with her.' He walked over and helped her pick up the food before insisting to help carry them back to her apartment.

At this Kazume pouted. "But it's just down the road."

Arimon grabbed her hand and intertwined their fingers. "What kind of boyfriend would I be if I let you carry them? Wouldn't be the best start to a relationship would it?"

Kazume blushed. 'Boyfriend…got to get used to calling him that.' She smiled none the less and leaned her head on his shoulder while they strolled down the pathway. Kazume glanced up to look at Arimon and couldn't help the soft smile that appeared on her face.

'I really am the luckiest girl in the world.'

**End of Chapter**


	10. Good Times

**Chapter Ten – Good Times**

When the new couple arrived back to the apartment, Kazume was met with a very frantic Megumi.

"What took you so long? I've been so worried! I thought maybe you were mugged or something!"

Kazume smiled bemusedly. "No I wasn't mugged, I got…distracted" She turned to smile at her new boyfriend, who smiled back.

Megumi peered suspiciously at the two of them until she looked down and noticed they were holding hands. Her eyes grew to the size of dinner plates and she looked up at her best friend.

"Kazume…" When said girl looked back at her she grinned. "Did something happen between you two?"

Kazume grinned. "You could say that." She proved her point by turning around to Arimon and kissing him right on the lips.

Megumi pumped her fist into the air and cheered. "YAY! It's about time you guys! Boo Yeah!"

Kazume sweat dropped when her friend continued to dance around the room. "Uh…Megumi, aren't you overdoing it a little?" The now hyper brunette zoomed up to her, grabbed her hands and spun her in a circle.

Kazume laughed. "Megumi! Settle down!"

Megumi stopped spinning them and let her go, still wearing a large smile. "Sorry, but this is great news! You go to the store to buy groceries and you come back with a boyfriend!"

Kazume giggled. "I ran into him on the way back and well…we just kind of…got talking and before we knew it we told each other how we felt."

Arimon stepped next to her and wrapped an arm around her waist. Kazume looked up at him and they smiled at each other. Megumi looked back and forth between the lovebirds, she felt extremely happy for them. She had known for months these two were meant for each other, and now that they were finally together, she could sit back and watch her friend enjoy the happiness she more than deserved.

She saw they had now forgotten she was there, while they gazed lovingly at each other. She smiled and decided she would leave them alone. 'I have a dinner to prepare anyway.' Giving them one final glance, Megumi strode out of the door and into the kitchen.

Kazume had vaguely noticed her best friend leaving, but she was too caught up with her boyfriend. She was so high on cloud nine right now that she was oblivious to the rest of the world. 'More like I'm looking down on cloud nine.' She mused to herself. She stepped forward and leaned her head onto his chest. Arimon brought his other arm up to hug her tightly. She shifted in his embrace and looked up to see him gazing softly down at her. She smiled and stretched her face upwards to meet his. They kissed for a few minutes until they were interrupted by a loud growl from Kazume's stomach. She pulled away with a blush and Arimon laughed.

"Guess we better see how Megumi's going, or maybe even lend her a hand."

Kazume rapidly shook her head. "If you want to help her out, be my guest. But I'm not going anywhere near the cooking, unless you want the kitchen to explode."

Arimon gave her a funny look. "You're not _that _bad at cooking are you?"

Kazume rubbed the back of head. "I really am, if you don't believe me then ask Megumi. She's been a witness to my disasters."

Arimon grinned. "Really? In that case…" He turned and made his way into the kitchen. "Hey Megumi!"

Kazume's face turned to one of horror and she chased after him. "No wait! I was only kidding! Megumi don't tell him anything!"

The hour they ate dinner involved Megumi gladly spilling all of Kazume's bad experiences with cooking. While Arimon howled with laughter, poor Kazume sat in her chair with her head down and her face red with embarrassment. When it was clear her boyfriend wasn't going to calm down anytime soon, Kazume gave him a very irritated glare and huffed.

"Go ahead and laugh, see if I care."

Her serious tone brought Arimons' laughing to an abrupt halt when she stood up and stalked out of the dining room. Arimon called her name out but she completely ignored him and slammed her bedroom door behind her. Feeling utterly confused, he turned to Megumi.

"Did I do or say something wrong?"

Megumi sighed. "Don't take it personally; Kazume's always been a little sensitive when it comes to the cooking. So you're non-stop hysterical laughter might've offended her a little bit. But then again…I did start it."

Arimon felt extremely guilty "I…I had no idea. I didn't mean any harm."

Megumi smiled. "I'm sure she knows that, but I think you should go talk to her anyway."

Arimon nodded and rose from his seat. "Yeah, you're right." As he reached the door, he was stopped when Megumi called out. "Hey, Arimon."

He looked at her. "Yeah?"

She smirked. "Kazume is like a sister to me, so if you hurt her, I'll slit your throat…understood?"

Arimon gulped. "Uh...you got it."

Megumi smiled and waved him away. "Good, off you go then."

Arimon gave her a nervous grin before making his way down their small corridor. 'Girls are scary…especially when they're protecting their best friends.' When he reached Kazume's door, he stood rooted to the floor. 'But then again…nobody has more of a temper on her than my own girlfriend. I'd rather be a prisoner in hell again than be at the receiving end of Kazume's wrath.' He swallowed again and knocked on her door. "Kazume, it's Arimon. Can I come in?"

When there was no answer, he sighed and leaned his head against the door frame. "Look…I'm really sorry for laughing. I didn't realize how sensitive you are about your cooking. I was a selfish idiot and it was wrong of me to make fun of you. Can you forgive me? Please…we only just began being together. I don't want our first night to start with us fighting."

Arimon started when the door suddenly slid open. There stood Kazume, who stared intensely at her boyfriend.

"What you did really hurt." Her emotionless tone sent shivers up his spine. Oh yeah…she was pissed.

He looked at the ground with shame. "I know…it won't happen again."

Arimon was startled when she suddenly let out a tiny giggle. He looked up to see her clamping her hands over her mouth to try and hold in her laughter. He raised an eyebrow at her. "Am I missing something?"

She shook her head and took her hands away, still giggling. "I'm sorry. That was cruel of me, I'm not mad at you."

Arimon's jaw dropped. "Wait…you're not angry?"

Kazume smiled. "I was at first. My disastrous cooking is really embarrassing for me so I take it very seriously if anybody laughs about it. But the moment I was in my room I was already over it and thought that maybe I had overreacted a little." She giggled. "Besides, if our roles were reversed, I probably would've reacted the exact same way."

Arimon let out a breath of relief. "Well if it's any consolation, you more than make up for your lack of cooking skills with your mad motorbike racing. So far I've never seen you lose a single race, you're undefeatable"

Kazume blushed. "What can I say…I just really love racing." She then let out a big yawn which Arimon smiled out.

"Sounds like someone's getting sleepy, are you going to turn in?"

She rubbed her eyes. "Maybe I will…that run-in with Hild wore me out more than I realized. She's exhausting to be around."

Arimon laughed. "Amen to that. Well come on then, I'll help tuck you in."

Kazume smiled brightly and practically flew onto her futon. Arimon made sure she was comfortable before covering her with blankets. When he went to stand up, he was stopped when she grabbed his sleeve. He turned back to see her gazing at him with pleading eyes.

"Can you…stay here with me? Just until I fall asleep."

Arimon couldn't resist her puppy-dog look and smiled at her. "Of course I will."

Kazume scooted over so he could lie down next to her. He settled himself down on top of the blankets and lay on his side so he could face her. Kazume lay on her back so she could look up at him properly. Arimon positioned his arm so that it curled around behind her head and rested next to her shoulder. Kazume reached up and softly ran her fingers down his jaw, while gazing lovingly into his eyes.

"Thanks for tucking me in."

Arimon bent down and leant his forehead against hers. "I can do it every night if you want."

Kazume's eyes sparkled. "Would you? Every night from now on?"

He smiled at how excited she looked. "Consider this our nightly routine."

She rubbed her nose against his and giggled. "I look forward to it."

Arimon sighed. "And one day… I'd like to sleep here as well. So I can spend the whole night holding you."

Kazume cupped his cheek. "I wish for that too…more than anything. But for now, just lie with me."

Arimon smiled. "I will…I'll stay until you fall asleep. That's a promise." He sealed his promise by leaning down and kissing her tenderly. She responded and moved her hand to the back of his head to hold him there. When her grip weakened, Arimon slowly pulled away to see that her eyes were slowly drooping shut. She smiled sleepily at him. "Good night, my Arimon."

He smiled and gently kissed her on the forehead. 'Good night…my Kazume.'

**(A few days later at the temple)**

Megumi groaned loudly. "Sheesh can't they take their lovey dovey crap somewhere else?"

Belldandy smiled and turned to the couple the brunette was referring to. Since they had started dating; Kazume and Arimon had been practically inseparable. Surprisingly for everyone though, Kazume was the one who took it upon herself to cling to her boyfriend the instant he was within sight. Even so, Arimon never complained about the attention and always returned her affections with a tight hug of his own.

And today wasn't any different; all their friends watched bemusedly as they sat snuggled in the corner of the room whilst completely absorbed in their own little world. Belldandy felt her heart flutter when the pair shared a soft kiss.

Megumi sniffed and turned away. "You know I was really excited for them a few days ago, but they're so mushy all the time it's getting ridiculous."

Her brother rolled his eyes. "Leave them be Megumi, they're in love. And they've only been together for a little while."

Megumi sighed. "I know…I guess I'm just missing my best friend."

Belldandy placed a hand on her shoulder. "Then go talk to her, tell her you miss spending time together."

Megumi contemplated her words while she watched the couple in the corner. Kazume was smiling up at Arimon with her eyes shining brightly. Megumi had never seen her looking so happy in all the time she knew her, and she immediately felt guilty for wanting to tear her best friend away. But at the same time, she really just wanted to spend a day with the girl like they used to before Arimon came into the picture.

Torn between her guilt and desperation, Megumi stood up and trudged out of the room. Her exit, however, did not go unnoticed by Kazume who gazed concernedly at her best friends retreating figure. She turned and looked at Belldandy who gave her a smile and nodded. She smiled back and looked back to her boyfriend.

"Arimon, I have to go."

Also having noticed Megumi's mood, he smiled. "I know… I'll see you later."

Kazume kissed him again before standing up and running out of the room to catch up to Megumi. She raced outside to see her leaning against the large frame of the temple's gate entrance. She walked over to her and saw Megumi appeared to be deep in thought. Her eyes softened.

"Megumi?"

The brunette jumped slightly and looked at her with wide eyes. "Kazume…you scared me."

Kazume smiled apologetically. "Sorry, it wasn't intentional."

Megumi sighed. "Did you need something?"

Kazume frowned at how dismissive she acted. "Did I do something wrong?"

Megumi smiled slightly. "No…you didn't do anything."

Kazume wasn't convinced. "Are you sure? I saw how sad you were when you left the room."

Megumi sighed again. "I just…I really miss you Kaz."

Kazume felt confused. "What are you talking about? I see you every day."

Megumi shook her head. "Not really. We hang out sometimes, but nowadays you're spending all your time with Arimon."

Kazume suddenly felt horrible and she looked at the floor. "Oh Megumi…I'm so sorry. I'm such a horrible friend."

Megumi stepped forward and put her hands on her friends' shoulders. "Kaz…look at me." When she did she smiled. "You're not a horrible friend. The only thing you've done is fallen in love, and there's nothing wrong with that. It's like the saying goes, love is blind."

Kazume shook her head. "It doesn't matter! You're my best friend! Just because I'm dating Arimon now, doesn't mean I have to ignore everyone else! Argh! I can't believe how selfish I've been!"

Megumi chuckled. "Easy there, don't stress yourself. And cut yourself some slack, it's not your fault that you have a boyfriend that's so hot you can't look away from him.

Kazume giggled. "Hey eyes off, that's my man."

Megumi grinned. "You know what they say, you can look but you can't touch."

Kazume pushed her, still giggling. "Whatever!"

Megumi slung an arm around her shoulders. "Well, here's how it's gonna work. This coming weekend, we are going to have a girl's night. And that'll include Belldandy and her sisters."

Kazume stared. "Girl's night?"

Megumi grinned. "That's right, no boys allowed. So that boyfriend of yours will have to live without you because for one night I am stealing my best friend back!"

Kazume giggled again. "Sounds like fun!"

"You two sound like you're having a good time."

The girls turned around to see Arimon walking over to them with an amused smile. Megumi unlatched herself from Kazume and strutted up to the tall redhead. When she was close she put her face near his and leered at him, making the poor man sweat.

"Listen here buddy; I am taking my best friend for one night. So this Friday you are to stay faaaaaar away from our slumber party. You got that pal?"

Arimon put his hands up. "Consider it done, I stay clear of slumber parties, they freak me out."

Megumi narrowed her eyes. "Give me your word, you're not allowed anywhere near, no matter how badly you want to see your girlfriend."

Arimon could swear he could feel her glare burning a hole through his skull. "Cross my heart and hope to die, I won't bother you. I won't deprive Kazume from spending time with her friends." He made it official by drawing an imaginary cross over his heart.

Megumi nodded, satisfied. "Good enough." She then turned and smirked at Kazume. "He's very obedient Kazume."

Kazume smiled and walked over to her boyfriend who was still gazing warily at the scary brunette. She giggled at his nervous expression. "He just doesn't wanna piss you off. He's already done it once."

Arimon swallowed loudly, making the girls giggle. Megumi then started walking back to the door. "Well I'll leave you guys alone then; I don't wanna be around when it gets mushy." She grinned and waggled her eyebrows at Kazume. "Have fun!" She exclaimed loudly before disappearing into the house.

After she left, Arimon let out a breath he wasn't aware he had been holding. "Cripes…she scares the hell out of me."

Kazume smiled at him. "She misses me, that's all

He smiled at her. "I know, she really cares about you. You've got a good friend there Kazume, don't let go of that."

Kazume tilted her head. "That was deep, where did that come from?"

Arimon looked away and frowned. "Just remembering how it was back in the Demon Realm. Friendships are impossible to come by in that place because Demons are very proud beings. They believe sharing a bond like that and having to rely on them is a weakness.

Kazume reached out and took his hand. "But it wasn't like that with you was it?"

He smiled sadly. "No…I was the complete opposite. I had always dreamed of having a friend…to have that special someone that I could just talk to about everything. I felt extremely lonely whilst growing up…and it was that loneliness that made me as bitter as I was when we first met."

Kazume lifted a hand to his cheek and gently turned his face towards her. "Arimon…that's all in the past now. You're not that man anymore; you've become someone wonderful and caring. How do you think I fell in love with you?" She softly ran her fingers down his jaw. "I don't care that you have demon blood inside you, I love you for the person that's in here." She took her other hand and placed it on his chest, directly over his heart, but kept her gaze directly on his. "Don't ever forget how much you mean to me. I love you Arimon."

Her words went straight to his heart. Arimon wanted to cry; nobody had ever told him such kind and loving words than she had at that very moment. And if it were possible, Arimon fell even more in love with her than he already had. Not being able to say anything, due to the emotional lump in his throat, Arimon wrapped his arms tightly around his beloved and buried his face in her neck. Tears leaked from his eyes and landed on her shirt.

"Thank you." He murmured with a quivering voice. "I love you Kazume…I love you so much."

Kazume didn't need to see his face to know he was crying. She just held him close and let him release emotions she knew he'd been bottling up for years. The pain and suffering she could feel from him stung her heart and she allowed herself to shed tears with him. She leaned her head onto his shoulder and whispered soothingly.

"I'm here my love...I always will be."

Kazume continued to hold her boyfriend close while he cried into her shoulder. After several minutes his sobs finally subsided and everything became quiet. He kept his hold on her though and the two just enjoyed basking in each other's embrace. A minute later Arimon finally lifted his head and pulled away from her. He chuckled with embarrassment.

"Gosh, look at me. I'm a freaking mess. Sorry about this Kazume."

Kazume giggled and shook her head. "Don't apologize, my only concern is that you're feeling better…are you?"

Arimon smiled. "Heaps…like a huge load just lifted off my shoulders."

Kazume lifted a hand to his cheek. "As I said, I'm right here whenever you need me."

Arimon expressed his thanks by pulling her close to him and bringing her face up to meet his in a tender kiss. Kazume's eyes fluttered close and she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. After a minute, Kazume decided to be a little bold. She opened her mouth a little and traced her tongue suggestively across her boyfriend's lips. Arimon froze in surprise at her forward move but he quickly relaxed and opened his mouth to let her in. Kazume darted her tongue in to meet his and they continued to kiss heavily for the next several minutes. Once or twice Kazume needed to break away for a second to breathe, but she would crash her mouth back on Arimons a moment later.

While the couple stood there making out, they failed to notice someone standing only a few metres away watching them with their jaw practically hitting the ground. After Megumi had left them earlier, she had gone inside to catch up with her brother. She and Keiichi sat inside his room and chatted away, talking over how and where their lives currently were. After a little while Megumi announced that it was getting late and that she needed to grab Kazume and go home to organise dinner. After bidding a hearty goodbye to Keiichi and the sisters, she made her way back through the door she came in and walked around to where she had last left the romantic pair. When she found them, she saw something she definitely wasn't expecting. There was her best friend, pressed up against her boyfriend so tightly they looked they were attempting to merge into one person. They were kissing like there was no tomorrow, their mouths moving desperately against each other while making the occasional moaning sound.

Megumi knew that if she didn't do or say something then they'll keep this up all day. So she cleared her throat...loudly.

Kazume's eyes shot open when she heard a cough to her left and she yanked her mouth away from Arimons. She looked over and saw her best friend staring at her with a raised eyebrow and her arms folded.

Kazume's face turned bright red. "Oh uh…hehe…Hey Megumi."

The brunette rolled her eyes. "Whenever you're done playing tonsil hockey, we need to get going, I have dinner to make."

The thought of food caught Kazume's attention and her eyes lit up. "Oh! Ok I'll be right along!"

Megumi grinned and turned away to let her say goodbye to her boyfriend. Kazume turned back to Arimon and smiled at him.

"I have to go now, will I see you tomorrow?"

Arimon smiled and kissed her forehead. "Of course you will.

Kazume gave him one last peck on the lips before walking away with Megumi. The two girls mounted her bike and rode out of the grounds. Arimon watched them go with his gaze fixed on the driver, not looking away until the bike was completely out of sight. Once they were gone, he turned around and headed back to the house.

**(The following Friday afternoon)**

Kazume walked back to her apartment with her hand intertwined with that of her boyfriends'. The two had wanted to spend the day together before Kazume was to be snatched away to the girls' night Megumi had planned a few days prior. Arimon's plan was to drop his girlfriend off and leave that place before he could get pulled into the living nightmare. As much as he loved Kazume, he was deadly afraid of slumber parties.

Kazume looked at him to see him looking somewhat frightful and tugged on his hand. When he looked at her she gazed concernedly at him.

"Are you alright?"

He grinned. "Sure…why wouldn't I be?"

She tilted her head curiously. "You looked scared for a moment there."

Arimon scratched the back of his head. "Just planning on avoiding your little party."

Kazume giggled. "Well it is for girls only."

Arimon smiled at her cute laugh. "I'm glad I was able to steal you away for the day at least. Since Megumi is forbidding me to see you at all tonight."

Kazume tapped his nose playfully. "It's just for one night, I'm sure we'll survive."

They turned a corner and the tall apartment came into view. When she spotted her home, Kazume halted in her tracks. Arimon looked over at her when he felt her pull him to a stop.

"Kazume? Are you okay?"

Kazume didn't answer. Instead she grabbed the front of his shirt and yanked his head down to kiss him. Arimon barely had time to respond when she pulled away and leant her forehead against his.

"I'm sorry." She whispered quietly. "I won't get to see you for the rest of the night…I just want to stay like this a little while longer."

Arimon reached forward and put his arms around her. "But you said yourself Kaz…it's just one night."

Kazume shifted her eyes to meet his. "It's too long…"

Arimon chuckled. "We'll see each other tomorrow, I promise."

Kazume's eyes widened as an idea appeared in her mind. 'It's crazy…but what's the harm?' She pulled out of his hug slightly to look at him with sparkling eyes.

"I have an idea!"

Arimon grew nervous from the look on her face. "Uh…what's that?" If it were possible, her eyes grew brighter.

"Why don't you move in?"

Arimon's mind went into shock. "What?" 'Did she just…?'

Kazume grinned widely at him. "Come move into the apartment! Then we'll never be apart!"

Arimon would've accepted without any hesitation if it weren't for a small doubt prodding the back of his mind.

"I don't know if Megumi would like that."

Surprisingly, Kazume just laughed. "Don't you worry about her; I'll make her come around."

Arimon smiled. "Then by all means, I'll be happy to move in."

Kazume squealed and threw her arms around him. Arimon laughed and spun her around with his arms once again wrapped around her waist. He placed her back on the ground but kept his hold on her. Kazume smiled at him before leaning up to capture his lips once more in a kiss. This time Arimon was ready for it and kissed her back full force. As they stood in their embrace, Arimon couldn't help but think about where he was in his life right now. He felt happier than he ever had before, now he was going to start a whole new chapter living with the girl he loved the most. And this time he was going to live life to the fullest the very best he could…with Kazume by his side.

**End Of Chapter**


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